Outsourcing&More 46 May-June 2019

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No. 3 (46) | May–June 2019 ISSN 2083-8867 PRICE EUR 6 (INCL. 8% VAT)

CREATIVE FOCUS ON BUSINESS EVENTS

– interview with Przemysław Witkowski and Krzysztof Kamiński from the Focus Event Agency |page 22 SSC LIONS:

BUSINESS:

CAREER & DEVELOPMENT:

The Lion breaks barriers and builds the bridges |page 38

Entire spectrum of BPM solutions is delivered from Gdynia |page 36

Synergy, opportunities, courage and trust |page 106

Support at every stage of SSC growth KPMG offers advisory services for Shared Service Centers and Outsourcing organizations at every transformation phase: from strategy development and target operating model design, through solution implementation and optimization of already established organizations.

KPMG Experts support companies in developing innovative solutions in their organizations using centralization and business process improvement methods.

KPMG supports business transformation towards intelligent digital organizations by complex solutions implementation in area of reporting and performance monitoring (BI – dedicated dashboards online with easy access to transactional data), and process automation (RPA/IA).

Global SSOA Centre of Excellence constantly works on best practices and innovative solution development, improving methodologies and adjusting it to changing trends, clients’ needs and expectations.

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INTRODUCTION

Editor-in-chief Dymitr Doktór dymitr.doktor@proprogressio.pl DTP Iwona Nowakowska Advertising reklama@outsourcingandmore.pl Published by PRO PROGRESSIO Editorial address ul. Sobieskiego 104/29 00-764 Warszawa www.proprogressio.pl P: +48 22 213 02 45 F: +48 22 213 02 49

editor@proprogressio.pl www.outsourcingandmore.pl Print Drukarnia Jantar Legal support Chudzik i Wspólnicy An electronic version of the Magazine see the website www.outsourcingandmore.pl Selected photos come from shutterstock.com website.

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No copying, reproduction or photocopying allowed without written consent of the publisher.

The views expressed in this publication as well as the content of the adverts are not necessarily those of the editor.

@DymitrDoktor

Dear Readers, Four months of 2019 are already behind us. The dynamics of the modern business services sector shows that the current year is already full of new investment projects in Europe, and the following months promise many interesting initiatives.

In the current edition of Outsourcing&More, we decided to take a closer look at the industry of Event Agencies who organize business events. We talked to Przemysław Witkowski and Krzysztof Kamiński from Focus Event – creators of such events as Outsourcing Stars Gala, Oracle Code Explore and Oracle Impact, European Start-Up Day or the Retail Banking Awards Gala.

As every year, Tholons publishes a list of 100 cities, which are indicated as recommended locations for the BSS sector. This year’s edition of the report brings many changes compared to almost all previous Tholons publications. The unexpected changes affected the assessment of Polish cities, but this is not the only one surprise.

From the current edition of Outsourcing&More, we decided to enrich the content with publications from the world of finance and automotive, which will be included as a series of texts presented

by Kingsman Finance.

At the end, I invite you to read the summary of business events.

The third edition of The BSS Tour series began in Poland, this time in Bydgoszcz, and soon will appear in other Polish cities. The organi­ zers took care of interesting topics, which did not escape the attention of a wide group of participants of this event.

Partners

Enjoy reading, Dymitr Doktór Editor in Chief Authors: Adrian Dąbrowski • Mateusz Chudzik • Aleksandra Konicka • Szymon Stadnik • Karina Kreja • Izabela Krajewska • Wojciech Pankowski • Andżelika Majewska • Maciej Majewski • Piotr Skuza • Sanjay Puria • Wiktor Doktór • Marek Szul • Dr. Nikolaos Dimitriadis • Krzysztof Kamiński • Przemysław Witkowski • Artur Sutor • Łukasz Dreger • Laura Balsiuke • Anna Rolka-Zawadzka • Loredana Niculae • Izabela Galus • Agnieszka B. Dąbrowska

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

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INDEX

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10 12 14 18 22 28 32 36 38 44 4

BUSINESS NEWS

Bydgoszcz talks about business experience in the field of HR The third edition of the BSS Tour was launched in Bydgoszcz on the 17th of April 2019.

Innovation and Technology Talks during Emerging Europe InnoTech conference in London Despite having shrunk by 27 per cent to 2.5 billion euros in 2018, the British outsourcing market is still one of the world’s biggest.

10 tips for better acoustics in open offices Acoustics Consultant Pontus Thorsson gives us a better understanding of acoustics in open plan offices and what is important to consider.

Regional cities are burgeoning Interview with Piotr Skuza, an Associate and a Regional Manager of the office agency at real estate advisory firm Savills.

MAIN INTERVIEW

Creative Focus on business events About the world of business events from the perspective of event agency we talk to Przemysław Witkowski and Krzysztof Kamiński from the Focus Event Agency.

Digital Finance – how to become a digital leader in a company?

The role of Finance Function and Chief Financial Officer has gone through changes caused by global trends, progressive globalization in all areas of the economy, as well as a growing need for modern solutions in a dynamic business world.

Call Center outsourcing and Customer Communication Outsourcing the services is currently a very common phenomenon.

Entire spectrum of BPM solutions is delivered from Gdynia Interview with Sanjay Puria, CFO of WNS Group.

The Lion breaks barriers and builds bridges We present the real Lion of the SSC industry. Our guest is Marek Szul, Senior Director of Operations at Lionbridge Poland.

Top 8 Tips to help you find the perfect nearshoring partner How to obtain benefits of having SSC, with limited risk and limited investment.

Can outsourcing be an answer?

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

48 50 54 56 58 62 66 70 74 76 78 Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Sharp decline of Polish cities in the annual Tholons ranking The changes, which are presented every year by the authors of the ranking, astound even very experienced analysts and industry consultants, especially from Europe.

Prevention of money laundering Increasingly more often, entrepreneurs are voicing their frustration with how heavily broadly framed economic activity is being regulated.

Customer experience is in the customer’s brain!

We are an applied neuroscience lab. This means we are reading brains... on a daily basis!

From a start-up to being at the forefront of personnel consultancy companies in Poland Interview with Andżelika Majewska, Vice-President of the LeasingTeam Board, and Maciej Majewski, President of the LeasingTeam Board.

INVESTMENTS NEWS

Brama Miasta modern office building in developing Lodz Lodz is becoming more and more attractive for new employees.

Is your business ready for automation?

The technological advancement is clearly something we all see around us.

Engineering GBS in Lithuania: growing and diversifying with each new arrival With Global Business Services, growth doesn’t just mean getting bigger.

A Touch of Scandinavian Hygge Style Vastint is transforming the lobbies of its Business Garden buildings beyond recognition.

Tenants say: checking!

Commercial space tenants have between a couple of weeks and a few months to check whether their service charges for 2018 were correctly calculated.

Which countries invest in Lublin and in which industries they are strong?

In recent years Lublin enjoys an increased interest of foreign investors.

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INDEX

82 88 92 96 100 104 106 108 110 6

Metal, glass & BPO Today, Częstochowa focuses on the development of industry and business again, but it does not come from the desire to chase the current trends by the self-government.

Lodz has a new steersman The first quarter of 2019 brought personnel changes in the Economic Development and International Cooperation Office in the City of Lodz Office.

Foreign investors trust in Bydgoszcz Almost half of the business service centres operating in the City have their headquarters outside of Poland.

Kielce: foreign-owned enterprises and prestigious international trade fairs as important link in city’s economy Foreign-owned enterprises create a significant segment of the local economy in Kielce.

6 Reasons why Poznan is a great place for IT sector According to the report Investment potential of the IT sector in Poznan prepared for the City of Poznan by the Experis recruitment agency Poznan stands out for a large both economic and labour potential.

HR NEWS

Synergy, opportunities, fearless and trust Interview with Agnieszka B. Dąbrowska, HR Manager in SoftServe Poland.

Test Automation Engineer For years we have been observing steady growth in demand for IT specialists representing specific areas and technologies.

Recruitment ad

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

BUSINESS

BUSINESS NEWS WARSAW WRONIA 31 OFFICE SCHEME IS SOLD

DIGITAL WORKFORCE MOVES TO A NEW LOCATION IN LODZ Digital Workforce, the leading intelligent automation service company in Europe, continues strong growth in Poland and has moved to a new, bigger office in Lodz. Established in 2015, Digital Workforce employs today over 200 intelligent automation specialists, and over 80 of them are based in Poland.

The company provides Digital Workers (RPA and IPA), which are common also in shared services across the globe today.

These tireless and error-free workers handle many repetitive and routine tasks, such as master data maintenance, postings, reconciliations, data controls, reporting and closing activities. Digital Workers not only make F&A processes more efficient but also increase the quality and effectiveness, and are also one of the most effective ways to meet increasing compliance requirements.

Ghelamco Poland has completed the sale of the Wronia 31 office scheme located in the centre of Wola’s business district.

The property was acquired by LaSalle Investment Management (LaSalle), one of the world’s leading real estate investment managers with USD 65 billion of assets under management across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific.

LaSalle Investment Management (LaSalle) has acquired the property on behalf of the pan-European fund Encore+.

Award Central and Eastern Europe.

Wronia 31 has received the BREEAM eco certificate with the Outstanding rating for the Post Construction stage.

It is the second time in history and the first in five years that an office building in Poland has got such a high rating.

It offers 16,600 sq m of Gross Lettable Area and houses a bilingual kindergarten on the ground floor. The building is primarily occupied by BNP Paribas Securities Services and Frontex – the European Border and Coast Guard Agency of the European Union. Wronia 31 is situGhelamco was represented in the ated in the area of Rondo Daszyńskiego, transaction by JLL and Greenberg which has emerged as the new business Traurig. LaSalle was represented by centre of Warsaw. The location offers CBRE, White & Case, Arcadis and KPMG. exceptional connectivity via private and Completed in 2017, Wronia 31 has public transport, including Warsaw’s become known for its unique archi- second Metro line. One of the highlights tecture and innovative technological of the project is its direct location at Plac solutions. In March, the property won Europejski, a unique public space open the international BREEAM Awards 2019 to both the tenants as well as the resicompetition in the category of Regional dents of Warsaw.

Moving onwards in their automation journey shared service centers and global companies are taking process automation to the next level with AI. Rule-based automation of RPA is supported with machine learning, cognitive automation technologies allowing Digital Workers to utilise unstructured source data and to provide human-kind decision making.

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

2019 PRODUCTION INDUSTRY. DIRECTIONS OF CHANGES AND WAGES The Polish production industry employs close to two million people. According to the latest edition of Grafton Recruitment & Gi Group Manufacturing 2019 Sales & Market Trends, labour force deficit is the greatest challenge facing the whole sector. There are still approximately 50,000 vacancies. Employers are looking for candidates for production jobs, i.e. welders, machine operators, loaders, sawyers, machinists, locksmiths, technical personnel, and experts. This situation results in wage hikes, among other things. It is estimated that as many as 60% of production plant crews were paid higher remunerations last year. And that is not all: it seems that further raises will also be observed this year.

It describes the full structure of an production organisation: production, quality, procurement, and logistics functions, supporting divisions (back office), and R&D. The report is primarily addressed to the heads of production organisations, HR directors, recruitment managers, organisations supporting investments, and business associations.

It contains expert comments and analy­ses with respect to market trends, threats and benefits, and the challenges faced by the production industry. It also provides answers to a number of questions connected with the condition this sector, such as: what are the trends on the labour market in the production industry? What are the wages exactly?

What are the highest-paying positions?

– This is good news for job candidates and As a result, the report is an insightful employees as the employers become more guide for foreign investors wishing flexible – comments Antonio Carvelli, to learn about the wages and benefits Management Board Member and in the Polish production sector.

Deputy Country Manager at Gi Group.

Source: Gi Group How do organisations tackle the personnel shortage? According to Magneti Marelli Country HR Manager Anna Grodecka quoted in the report – The duration of recruiting and hiring production personnel has been considerably extended. Given the lack of candidates on the local market, employers are also forced to supplement their workforce with candidates from across Poland’s eastern border, India or Bangladesh. As it is, retention is a top priority but a wage hike as such will not be enough to make it effective. Employers today have to offer comprehensive solutions. While wages and benefits remain a very important factor in decisions to choose or change jobs, organisational culture, a friendly working environment, and both physical and mental comfort are just as significant.

The Grafton Recruitment & Gi Group report presents wage rates for 201 jobs in the production sector divided by 13 voivodships and market segments (heavy industry, automotive, aviation, household appliances, chemical, and FMCG).

The Grafton Recruitment & Gi Group Manufacturing 2019 report can be downloaded upon registration at pl.gigroup.com/raport-manufacturing2019

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

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BUSINESS

BYDGOSZCZ TALKS ABOUT BUSINESS EXPERIENCE IN THE FIELD OF HR

The third edition of the BSS Tour – a series of business conferences organised by Pro Progressio and dedicated to various areas of management in the modern business services industry — was launched in Bydgoszcz on the 17th of April 2019.

The first event under the slogan Customer Experience in HR took place in Bydgoszcz. Experts from all over Poland talked about employer branding, legal regulations and presented case studies related to employer branding.

The way the conference was organised – combining discussion panels, presen­ tations, case studies as well as brainstorming sessions – enabled an in-depth analysis of the topic and met the ex­­­ pect­­ ations of the most eager-forknowledge participants. Experts from Baker McKenzie, Carlsberg GBS, Antal, Akzo Nobel, Linkleaders, the Bydgoszcz

Regional Development Agency, MDD, CDI Konsultanci Budowlani and Pracownia_EB shared their knowledge and experience.

The participants of the conference followed the discussions with great interest and joined in the talks.

In particular, a brainstorming session moderated by Adam Wąsik from Pracownia_EB showed that employer branding is very important in the life of a company. The participants also received invaluable advice on good practices as well as guidance on what to avoid when building a commu-

nication strategy based on employer branding.

The event was co-financed by the Regional Operational Programme for the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodeship for the years 2014–2020 and from the resources of Bydgoska Agencja Rozwoju Regionalnego Sp. z o.o.

The City of Bydgoszcz and the Bydgoszcz Regional Development Agency were partners of the conference.

Events from the BSS Tour series are planned for entirety of 2019 and will be held successively in various Polish cities.

Natalia Machińska, Carlsberg.

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Discussion pannel. From the left: Edyta Wiwatowska, Mira Mech, Joanna Gralewska, Maciej Wawrzyniak, Tomasz Podolak, Iwo Paliszewski.

Michał Lisawa during his power speech.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Hard Talk: How to avoid mishaps in EB?

by Adam Wąsik.

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BUSINESS

INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY TALKS DURING EMERGING EUROPE INNOTECH CONFERENCE IN LONDON Despite having shrunk by 27 per cent to 2.5 billion euros in 2018, according to the Information Services Group, the British outsourcing market is still one of the world’s biggest.

The demand for sourcing is expected to remain strong, even though the macro environment is more volatile now than it was a year ago. The industry will see an accelerating growth trend in 2019, driven by a growing appetite for digital transformation, even in the face of unforeseen macro-economic challenges. The forecast makes the UK an important market for service providers from across Central and South-Eastern Europe.

In early April 2019, Emerging Europe, a London-based intelligence and networking platform, organised InnoTech Destination UK as part of its Alliance for Business Services, Innovation and Technology initiative. This was one of a series of events across three key markets, designed to create partnerships between emerging European service providers and UK IT and sourcing leaders.

The conference discussed the current main trends and how the emerging Europe region responds to them – and was divided into three main themes.

The first focused on artificial and human intelligence and featured two keynote presentations by Jair Ribeiro, Artificial Intelligence Strategist, Volvo Group IT and Ollie O’Donoghue, Research Vice

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

President, IT Services, HFS Research, and was followed up by a panel discussion about the future of work — rethinking the modern workforce in the era of automation and AI. The second theme, devoted to trends, looked at two disruptive companies: Bolt (formerly Taxify) and TransferWise. A fireside chat featuring Rich Pleeth, Managing Director at Bolt, and Alastair Thompson, Head of Business Development and Partnerships at TransferWise, was moderated

by Samuel Burke, Business and Technology Correspondent at CNN Business. This theme also explored the idea of collaborative partnerships and how ready service providers and buyers are to use them. It included a fireside chat with Future Processing and Neyber, focused on the cultural aspects of such a partnership.

The third and last theme looked at blockchain and personal data management, with comprehensive coverage of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) provided by Punit Bhatia, a privacy expert and author.

The next InnoTech conference, this time focused on the Nordic markets, will take place in October 2019.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

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BUSINESS

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TIPS

FOR BETTER ACOUSTICS IN OPEN PLAN OFFICES Nowadays, we often work in open plan offices to encourage collaboration, communication and creativity. In these environments, it is important to plan acoustics to avoid noise-related stress and concentration difficulties. Acoustics Consultant Pontus Thorsson gives us a better understanding of acoustics in open plan offices and what is important to consider.

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Kinnarps, Vibe accoustic panels.

Currently, many workplaces have been designed to promote collaboration rather than individual work. This shift has come about for a number of reasons. For example, research shows that thoughts and ideas are better developed in collaboration with others. But there is also a social aspect. As society becomes increasingly digitised, we socialise less with each other in person and more on social media.

As such, our office and colleagues are ever more important for our social interaction.

This is reflected in office design, where open, social spaces are prioritised over quiet concentration zones.

in open plan offices. Open solutions almost always entail a strong compromising of the acoustic environment.

Many people simply have trouble finding places suitable for concentrating and working undisturbed, which increases stress levels and decreases efficiency. According to Acoustics Consultant Pontus Thorsson, it is not the noise level, per se, that is the biggest issue, but rather the conversations going on around us. – Humans have succeeded as a species thanks to our well-developed language and our ability to cooperate. The disadvantage is that we are programmed to listen to each CREATING A BALANCED NOISE LEVEL other. As soon as we hear speech, our It is a great challenge to create good brains strive to hear and interpret what acoustics and a balanced noise level is being said. We are simply interrupted

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

in our work by colleagues carrying on conversations around us – Pontus Thorsson tells us.

Total silence is not necessary in office environments, in fact, it is often good to have a bit going on in the acoustic environment. However, it is important to provide spaces for concentration in which we can work undisturbed and screened off from colleagues’ discussions. – It is best to take your own operations into consideration and to think in terms of activities. The basic rule of thumb is that there should be spaces for all types of activities, from open, creative spaces, to quiet spaces for focus work – says Pontus Thorsson.

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BUSINESS

Kinnarps, Vibe accoustic panels.

HOW TO PROTECT THE QUIET ENVIRONMENTS

Author:

Karina Kreja, International Concept Manager & Workplace Expert, Kinnarps

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It is, thus, not a matter of creating absolutely silent offices, but rather of balancing noise levels and finding suitable sound environments for all kinds of activities. Creative work and brainstorming are better done in a setting with a bit of a buzz. But for focus work, surrounding conversations can be very disturbing. – Our hearing has not developed in 50,000 years. Nature remains the reference point of hearing, and nature is never silent. An entirely silent environment can actually be taxing on many of us. Total silence is not what we aim to achieve, but rather a sense of peace and quiet. That being said, it

is still quiet spaces that are exceedingly scarce in today’s offices – says Pontus Thorsson.

The most effective way to ensure a quiet space for focus work is to put up a soundproof wall. If this is not a possibility, put up proper sound-absorbing floor screens, thus creating a room within a room for focus work. Also ensure that your ceilings and walls have excellent sound-absorption qualities, not only in the screened off areas, but in the entire office. As the largest surface, the ceiling is most important in this respect.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

ACCOUSTIC HINTS AND TIPS 4.

Curtains contribute to a more pleasant environment, not only acoustically, but also visually. They should preferably be made with a thick fabric and hang a bit out from the wall/window.

5.

Make sure that your office chairs do not make unnecessary noise.

Chairs on legs should be fitted with felt pads and those on castors should roll on sound-absorbing material.

6.

Sound absorbing ceiling screens (baffles) efficiently minimise airborne noise from travelling through the environment.

7.

Floor mats absorb noise, primarily footsteps.

1.

A wall-to-wall acoustic ceiling is a good starting point. It should be suspended from the ceiling and have a sound-absorbing effect on the entire office.

2.

9.

Vertical sound absorbers can be beneficial in rooms that have added requirements for peace and quiet, as well as in select places in the open environment.

It is important to offer rooms that are soundproof and that are perceived as being silent. In such spaces, one can hold meetings or do individual, undisrupted focus work.

3. Discussions and other sounds

Soundproof windows are essential to prevent outdoor sounds from leaking in. Naturally, this is very important if your office is situated in an urban environment or close to a road or railway.

are diffused by book shelves containing books and binders.

Room dividers may also be advantageous.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

8.

Remember to have a reasonable amount of space between workplaces.

10.

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BUSINESS

REGIONAL CITIES ARE BURGEONING Interview with Piotr Skuza, an Associate and a Regional Manager of the office agency at real estate advisory firm Savills.

Outsourcing&More: Regional cities are burgeoning and seeing record-high office supply levels. What was the si­ tuation on Poland’s regional markets like in 2018?

Piotr Skuza, a regional manager, Savills office agency: 2018 was a record-breaking year in terms of new office supply in regional cities. In 2018, the overall office supply in Poland’s eight business regions, excluding Warsaw, climbed to more than 512,000 sq m and there was another 940,000 sq m under construction at the end of last year.

At the end of December 2018, total office stock in Poland’s core regional cities (Krakow, Wrocław, Tricity, Katowice, Poznań, Łódź, Lublin and Szczecin) reached 4.9 million sq m.

Office developers are stepping up their activity, driven among other things by the growing employment in the BPO/ SSC sector, which – according to ABSL’s data – currently employs nearly 279,000 people. Growth in employment in this sector continues unabated, registering an annual rate of approximately

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30% and fuelling further demand for office space. Another strong sector is IT, which dominated on the regional markets in 2018, accounting for 34% of all office lease transactions.

In addition to Krakow and Wrocław, other cities are also seeing substantial increases in new office supply. Which regional cities are likely to grow the fastest in the near future?

Krakow and Wrocław are indisputably the largest regional city office markets with 1.26 million sq m and 1.05 million sq m of office space, respectively. The two cities also recorded the highest supply levels in 2018: 155,200 sq m in Krakow and 146,600 sq m in Wrocław, and the largest volumes of space under construction: 247,000 sq m and 222,000 sq m, respectively. The next biggest markets are Tricity (775,000 sq m) and Katowice (519,300 sq m), followed by Katowicesized Poznań (479,100 sq m) and Łódź (468,900 sq m). Of the eight regional cities, the two smallest markets are Lublin (194,300 sq m) and Szczecin (159,400 sq m).

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Piotr Skuza, an Associate and a regional manager of the office agency at real estate advisory firm Savills, heads the firm’s Poznań office. He joined Savills in 2012 as one of the first local market experts in Poznań among all leading commercial real estate services firms. Today, he leads transactions in other cities too, advising both tenants and landlords on Poland’s rapidly growing regional city office markets.

BUSINESS Besides Krakow and Wrocław, Tricity has the strongest development pipeline of nearly 145,000 sq m.

The largest projects currently underway and expected to be delivered in the near future include Alchemia IV Neon, developed by Torus, Olivia Prime B (another office building of the Olivia Business Center) and Wave, the first office project of Skanska Property Poland in Tricity.

At the end of 2018, there was nearly 110,000 sq m under construction in Poznań. The biggest projects in the pipeline comprised the second phase of Business Garden Poznań, completed in March 2019 (45,000 sq m, Vastint) and Nowy Rynek A and B (approx.

35,000 sq m, Skanska), the latter now fully let following two large pre-leases.

For Poznań, 2018 was not a peak year in terms of supply growth. Office supply barely topped 21,000 sq m delivered across three schemes: Pixel IV and V, Palacza Office and Garbary 67, a revitalised historic office building. Despite this, Poznań retains its strong position on the office map of Poland.

What is the average size of office buildings in regional cities? How likely are these cities to see large-scale office projects sized above 30,000 sq m delivered in 2019?

The average size of existing office buildings in regional cities is approximately 6,300 sq m. Buildings to be delivered in 2019 will be substantially bigger, averaging 9,300 sq m. The largest single office schemes include Alchemia IV Neon (34,000 sq m) and Tischnera Office (31,300 sq m), and the largest complexes underway are Business Garden Wrocław II (76,800 sq m), Business Garden Poznań II (44,900 sq m) and Nowy Rynek A and B (34,800 sq m).

Office projects in the pipeline in regional cities vary by size and indeed by city and the average annual office take-up. Office developers are watching the markets closely and analysing demand data in detail. If demand remains moderate, they will rather opt for project phasing or put project decisions on hold to wait for a market revival. The scale of a project also depends on the availability of external financing and the volume of secured pre-lets. The largest office buildings and parks are being developed in the biggest cities such as Krakow and Wrocław, where the leasing activity is the strongest.

One of the biggest projects in the pipeline comprised the second phase of Business Garden Poznań, completed in March 2019 (45,000 sq m, Vastint)

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Are office rents at comparable levels across regional cities? Or do they vary substantially by city?

There are obvious variations in rental rates across cities. Headline office rents vary by city and office building, ranging between EUR 10–15 per sq m per month. Developers are, however, in a strong position to command higher rents and are less flexible in lease negotiations on the markets seeing robust demand for modern office space and limited supply growth prospects.

natives for global corporations. In addition, salaries and living costs are slightly lower there. Regional cities also offer lower office rents that are well-aligned with the requirements of the rapidly expanding BPO/SSC tenants. To accommodate the needs of firms looking for large spaces, developers are able to provide a tailor-made building, an efficient and appropriately-sized floorplate, cutting-edge building systems and a range of attractive amenities for employees.

require such office features as phone booths, conference or smaller meeting rooms, well-designed kitchen spaces or modern relaxation rooms.

Mother and baby rooms and nap rooms are also becoming increasingly common. Original office design is becoming ever more important in this sector, albeit it tends to be rather conservative.

On the other hand, offices of IT firms feature truly interesting architectural

Krakow and Wrocław are indisputably the largest regional city office markets with 1.26 million sq m and 1.05 million sq m of office space, respectively. The two cities also recorded the highest supply levels in 2018 and the largest volumes of space under construction. The next biggest markets are Tricity (775,000 sq m) and Katowice (519,300 sq m), followed by Katowice-sized Poznań (479,100 sq m) and Łódź (468,900 sq m).

What are office vacancy rates like?

Where are the lowest and the highest?

In 2018, regional office take-up totalled nearly 645,000 sq m, the second-highest volume on record. At the end of last December the overall regional office vacancy rate stood at 8.4%, which was the lowest since 2008. Tenants wanting to relocate offices in one of the regional cities in 2019 will definitely have more choice given the projects that will come onto the markets in the next few months.

What are the latest trends in office requirements among tenants in regional cities?

Some criteria in the choice of an office building by tenants have remained unchanged for years, and include location and easy access to public transport. Times are, however, changing and the market requires tenants to have a greater awareness of other features which make a workplace attractive.

In our day-to-day business of supporting office tenants in market analyses and negotiations, we are seeing How do regional cities compare the changing trends in how office to Warsaw? space is being used. And as fit-out costs Regional city markets are catch- are rising, the adviser plays an increasing up with Warsaw. While the capi- ingly critical role helping to optimise tal city nearly doubled its office stock the letting process. in the last ten years, regional cities recorded a threefold increase in the same What is therefore important to tenperiod. Given the current development ants across sectors? pipeline, the office stock of regional citBPO/SSC and IT companies which ies and that of Warsaw might level off accounted for the biggest share of last in 2021. I mean the combined region- year’s office take-up on regional city al stock, because for the time being no markets have markedly increased their single regional city can rival Warsaw for office space requirements. the volume of its office space.

Features critical in shared services This does not change the fact that centres include the size and efficiency the multitude of strong regional cities is of a floorplate, the provision of natural Poland’s great strength and companies daylight and modern building systems seeking to grow on the Polish market such as ventilation, air-conditioning have a wide choice of high-quality and heating to guarantee a comfortbuildings and cities with high-skilled able working environment. Open space labour. Regional cities being home layouts dominate in a vast majority to leading universities are superb alter- of BPS/SSC companies which therefore

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

concepts dedicated to young employees for whom the work environment is one of key criteria in the choice of an employer. A chill-out zone and games rooms with video game consoles, billiards or darts are very important.

Open space also dominates in this sector, except for companies with business operations that require them to have confined and properly secured premises.

To choose the right office, we need to carefully review all potential locations and employee requirements and compare them with available spaces and budget limitations – this holds true for all sectors. An experienced adviser can help carry this process through to avoid many pitfalls that could otherwise prove costly in the future, and create a work environment for employees to enjoy and improve their satisfaction and efficiency.

Thank you for the interview.

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MAIN INTERVIEW

CREATIVE FOCUS ON BUSINESS EVENTS Business events in Poland and in the world are evolving.

To make an event that will be remembered by its participants for a long time, you need to reach for creative and unconventional ideas. About the world of business events from the perspective of event agency we talk to Przemysław Witkowski and Krzysztof Kamiński from the Focus Event Agency.

Wiktor Doktór, Pro Progressio: You have been responsible for the creation and implementation of the ‘Outsourcing Stars Gala’ for six years now. Every year the bar is raised and, every year, expectations also rise.

Is it easy to organise such an event?

How much time does it take? Also, what do you have to take into account when having such a responsibility?

Krzysztof Kamiński, Focus: The answer to this question is fairly obvious.

It’s not easy. However, this is not due to a lack of knowledge, shortcomings or specific risk areas. This results from only one thing. Most of the solutions that we use during the ‘Outsourcing Stars Gala’ are unique and are often implemented for the first time in our country. In addition, the Gala has become a multifaceted event that combines, in a very complicated way, many elements – both technological and ar-

22

tistic. Preparations for this event last around six months. For us, the main aim is to create a unique gala that will transform an event that is strictly business-related into a spectacular show and which international companies wouldn’t be ashamed of. On the other hand, the key is the clients and their courage when they’re not afraid to entrust an agency with the organisation of such a complex event.

The Gala is not the only big event you deal with. What other business events do you organise in Poland?

Przemysław Witkowski, Focus: Business events are the domain of corporate clients. We organise awards galas for the best employees, jubilee events, roadshows, conferences and evening business meetings for partners and clients, where a short official part is combined with networking during dinner.

Full version of this interview is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

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MAIN INTERVIEW

Full version of this interview is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

BUSINESS

DIGITAL SOLUTIONS USED IN COMPANIES (SOURCE: SSOA PULSE SURVEY, KPMG IN POLAND)

SHAREPOINT

81%

OCR

67%

DASHBOARDS

74%

EDI

52%

REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS

DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

CLOUD SOLUTIONS

SERVICE DESKS

40% 38%

38% 33%

MOBILE ACCESS TO ERP SYSTEM

12%

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

DIGITAL FINANCE

HOW TO BECOME A DIGITAL LEADER IN A COMPANY? The role of Finance Function and Chief Financial Officer has gone through changes caused by global trends, progressive globalization in all areas of the economy, as well as a growing need for modern solutions in a dynamic business world.

As a result, a modern finance department must go beyond the traditional extent of their duties in processing transactions, financial reporting and controlling. More and more often, a modern CFO is being seen as a strategist, a value creator, and a leader of change. Furthermore, the management boards of leading companies expect their finance teams to be business partners, supporting them in operational and strategic decisions and providing them with complete information based on reliable data, in real time.

According to a global survey carried out

by KPMG, 85% of the directors managing the most profitable companies claimed that their CFO plays a strategic role in creating intelligent analytical tools, as well as in providing high quality management information, supporting the long-term growth of their enterprise as a result.

But how can finance departments more effectively accomplish their new role by focusing on value-generating

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

tasks and consequently providing support in managerial decisions? With the help of technological solutions that are already widely used in finance: from transforming paper documents to electronic documents to using artificial intelligence.

ELIMINATION OF PAPER DOCUMENTATION One of the first steps in digitization is changing the company documents workflow from paper to electronic form.

This is accomplished by first introducing digital archiving and electronic document workflow with accompanying authorization procedures. Many companies have already discontinued issuing and processing printed invoices and have instead implemented e-invoicing.

The most effective organizations are characterized by a high rate of document processing without employee intervention, using tools for converting scanned documents to editable digital documents (such as OCR – Optical Character Recognition, and EDI – Electronic Data Interchange).

The next step in improving the exchange of information between finance and other teams in an organization is by introducing communication tools beyond the standard e-mail system – from automatic notifications to service-desk tools, which are becoming more and more popular beyond IT function.

AUTOMATION Organizations strive to eliminate their most time-consuming and repetitive tasks by implementing automation tools – from macros in Excel (VBA), through robotization of processes in existing systems, to implementing dedicated tools and systems. Automation can include not only basic accounting, such as invoice booking or payment generation, but also reporting and reconciliation processes.

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) can also be a suitable solution, especially in situations in which the replacement of an entire system or implementation of a new tool would be time-consuming and costly, and when the process itself is repetitive and routine.

29

BUSINESS

When these conditions are met, a virtual robot can take over the human work, performing tedious activities which are then recorded as part of an algorithm for use in other, existing systems. Because of this structured, algorithmic approach, the kinds of errors that characterise human work are reduced or even completely eliminated.

85%

of the directors managing the most profitable companies claimed that their CFO plays a strategic role in creating intelligent analytical tools, as well as in providing high quality management information, supporting the longterm growth of their enterprise as a result.

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The potential of robotization is being increasingly recognised by finance directors. According to a survey carried out by KPMG in Poland in 2018, 43% of finance teams have already begun implementing RPA, making finance a leader in robotization.

INTEGRATION OF PROGRAMS AND TOOLS ERP-class systems allow for integration of processed information in related databases and communication between systems without human intervention. Companies are increasingly using host-to-host solutions (for the needs of communication between the financial system and the banking platform, amongst other reasons), online platforms for communication with contractors and clients, automatic invoicing between group entities, and consolidation tools.

BLOCKCHAIN Thanks to the increased authenticity and minimized risk of processed information, Blockchain technology is slowly finding new applications in finance and is an excellent solution for areas such as payment execution and tax reporting.

On one hand, the use of various elements of digital solutions can limit the time spent by finance teams on repetitive, time-consuming and non-value adding tasks. On the other hand, they can support new finance roles as business partners. Their implementation is getting easier too, due to the availability of such solutions on the market, and amendments to existing legal regulations. This not only facilitates the introduction of the tools, but more and more often forces such activities, as without them adapting to new regulations would be very difficult (e.g. with SAF, GDPR). It’s no wonder that an increasing number of companies are pointing to Finance and Accounting as a priority area for investment, as well as the digital leader in a company.

Finance Functions in many enterprises operating on the Polish market are only at the beginning of their path towards digitalization. However, before they get underway, they should properly CLOUD SOLUTIONS prepare by performing fit-gap analysis, AS A SERVICE MODEL organizing and optimizing their existing Cloud computing allows for easier processes, and developing effective and more flexible access to the latest concepts of their management informaversions of tools and applications, tion model, etc. without the need to maintain an IT infrastructure. The use of mobile solu- KPMG offers a wide range of services tions increases the availability of infor- responding to these needs, from benchmation and improves processes execu- marking and finance function maturity tion thanks to applications for mobile assessment, to process optimization, devices (for example, for accepting development of management inforinvoices from a smartphone). mation system and comprehensive implementation of the target operating DATA ANALYTICS model for modern finance. The implementation of modern BusiAuthors: ness Intelligence tools is used not only for advanced data analysis, but also for multi-sectional management reporting (also in real time), precise planning and multi-scenarios forecasting. VisualizaIzabela Krajewska, tion of data as dashboards presenting Manager, Management Consulting Key Performance Indicators (KPI), allows at KPMG in Poland for quick assessment of a current situaWojciech Pankowski, tion in a company, as well as capturing Manager, Management Consulting at KPMG in Poland trends and identifying problems.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Anzeige

OUTSOURCING & SHARED SERVICE GERMANY FORUM Berlin, 4. - 5. June 2019 Only non-commercial and international management and strategy forum dedicated to the market for IT-, business process and shared services in Germany and Europe Insights into the German market International, English Balanced participant ratio Low participation / partnership fees Exclusive networking event included

All information, incl. schedule, pictures, video interviews, references and registration at:

www. outsourcing-forum.org

Organized by

Partner:

Berlin June 4./5.

2019

BUSINESS

CALL CENTER OUTSOURCING AND CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION Outsourcing the services is currently a very common phenomenon.

Used by companies from various industries, is considered as one of the best models of business cooperation, without which many enterprises or even whole industry branches could not develop. Similar case involves the concept of call center service. This is, in fact, equally popular to outsourcing accounting, marketing or PR activities. Extracting from the company’s structure individual operations and transferring them to external, specialized companies is a completely natural process. Following this path, call center outsourcing is quite a large room for maneuver in business partnership and achieving contractors’ goals. Implementation of such solutions can cover different operational cells of the company and focus on many processes, both internal and external. Eventually, strategy prepared by call center can be custom-made and perfectly suited for the contractor.

In part, it is a contractor who decides what services or products will be sold with the participation of a call center.

This has a big impact on the manner in which outbound telemarketing will be conducted, the same as what will be offered during telephone conversation and how a phone consultant will try to persuade us to a particular offer. Currently, companies pay a lot of attention to the correct construction of databases of potential customers as well as the competences and training of sellers, which makes the marketing campaigns, including telesales, become even more effective. In addition, contemporary possibilities of data analysis and personalization allow for the preparation of campaigns suitable for target group.

The range of sales strategies is very wide. Campaigns especially worth our attention include: upselling, brand loyalty, maintaining customer relations and recovering lost customers.

hotline and achieves equally high sales targets. It is also less aggressive from the customer’s point of view, because it is basically they who choose to call, not the other way round. The use such a solution is recommended for companies, which, for instance, have large networks of stationary stores and their products are used and purchased everyday. What does it often mean?

Basically, it is best fitted for food or clothing. Naturally, the inbound model is also applicable in many other industries, such as previously mentioned medicine, finances or banking. Technological development in recent years has enabled the implementation in call centers such functions as automatic identification of phone numbers, automatic call distribution or automatic voice support. Due to such improvements, call centers can significantly increase the efficiency of operations and the quality of customer service.

The first operation model carried out

by Call Center which comes to probably everyone’s mind is running sales by the usage of outgoing calls. This is undoubtedly the most well-known telemarketing service. Sales hotlines are so recognizable among people that they were generalised long time ago. The question whether it is positive or negative remains for individual assessment and experience.

A reverse of the outbound sales model is the inbound, or incoming, hotline.

This can be, for example, a private helpline of private medical care, banks or financial institutions. It sounds very different and is not associated with cold calling, but rather with virtual customer support. However, it is a very efficient form of sales or upsales. What is more, for some products the incoming call center is better than the outgoing

While speaking of the telemarketing development and client communication, it is worth to refresh terms that has been the basis for building strategies. The first is Multichannel, i.e. the development of communication, which has allowed Average Joe to take off his shoes, comfortably sit down in a chair and set aside the need to go to the store to make a purchase.

CALL CENTER OUTSOURCING

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION

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BUSINESS

Each marketing strategy strives to be a step ahead of the customer. Regardless of the marketing branch towards which we move, we want to have an offer ideally suited for our target group.

opinion, have tremendously influenced the development of Call Center industry in Poland.

At first, Netmining tool, which after the implementation of the appropriate monitoring code on website is able to track the activity of its users. Such a plug during testing users’ activity on the website grants them points based on the actions they perform.

After reaching the right number of points, the bot offers the user to leave phone number, responding with a pop-up message for this need.

Next, if given, the number goes to Call He has begun ordering products Center database and is forwarded online, via phone or through mobile to an appropriate consultant, who then applications, because they has establishes contact with the customer. become available due to Multi- What is more, information about user channel. A step forward after Multi- activities, which have been previously channeling is the Crosschannel. This collected, also are put into the base, can be described briefly as “together which helps personalize the offer. means more”, i.e. the mutual interfusing of information channels that Yet another great tool is the real-time have a coherent message. Here comes chat. It is not the bot, but a customer is a simple example – Joe wants to buy able to have a conversation with a dedishoes. He can call the hotline and ask cated consultant, flesh and blood. about, for example, technical aspects These types of applications resemble of the footwear. Then in the online their appearance as an ordinary chat store he is able to view the photos care- that can be hidden or recalled at any fully, read the description and decide time. Once closed, it does not pop up on the color and model. Finally, he again just to cover the page. Counterplaces an order via e-mail. At the same wise, it usually appears as a small bar time, each of these channels has at the bottom of the page which can consistent message. The third concept be expanded and reactivate at any is Omnichannel, which has became time. On the other side there is a Call an even better communication model. Center employee located. He or she is It ensures continuity and full personal- able to help the same as someone over ization of all communication channels. the helpline. For many customers, this Its aim is to provide a total customer form itself is more comfortable than satisfaction from the contact with a phone call. Experienced consultant the brand, regardless of time, place is able to adequately support even and means of communication. Omni three people at the once, maintaining assumes total integration in online and a professional level of service. Effecoffline service (on = off). tively conducted activities through the chat are able to significantly SOME CALL CENTER TOOLS increase the amount of online orders.

Along with the evolution of business The largest brands use such tools communication models, not only worldwide, and, at the same time, it is have marketing strategies changed an ideal solution for small and medisales, but also they has had an influ- um-sized businesses as well. ence on used tools. Companies’ awareness about technological develop- In other news (yet still in a topic ment, as well as the opportunities of much appreciated telemarketing that they have in terms of sales, have industry), there are self-services. a direct reflection in their activi- In other words, IVR – Interactive ties on the market. So let us mention Voice Response. Each of us has met what technological solutions, in our with the possibility of settling some

34

issue by calling the helpline, but not necessarily connecting directly to a consultant. Alternatively, we can partially gain information before the conversation takes place. Generally, IVR systems’ task is to collect information and solve the problem without connecting to the agent.

Depending on the the need to use automatic voice support, it can have a very simple scheme, e.g.: “press 1 if you are our customer or press 2 if you are interested in our offer“. Also, it may have more advanced functions of collecting and processing the data.

However, the development of this type of tools has taken the direction where communication is ultimately held on the client – virtual consultant line.

On the other hand, IVR is not anymore an innovative solution. Nevertheless, it is still timeless and valuable for contact center services.

Each marketing strategy strives to be a step ahead of the customer. Regardless of the marketing branch towards which we move, we want to have an offer ideally suited for our target group. Remember, however, that consumers are aware of technological expansion and become more and more picky about quality and service time. They have a great awareness of the value to money relationship, they often analyze competition as well as their requirements are constantly growing. The potential of online sales and omnichannel communication is continually developing and this trend is likely to remain unchanged.

The same is true for outsourcing Call Center and Telemarketing services, which will always be there they keep the pace.

Author:

Adrian Dąbrowski, Communication, Marketing & Employer Branding Specialist, CCIG Group

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

BUSINESS

ENTIRE SPECTRUM OF BPM SOLUTIONS IS DELIVERED FROM GDYNIA Interview with Sanjay Puria, CFO of WNS Group.

Wiktor Doktór, Pro Progressio: WNS is a leading, global company in the BSS Sector. You are present in Gdynia for several years already. What services do you provide from Gdynia to your clients?

Sanjay Puria, WNS: WNS is a New York Stock Exchange-listed global Business Process Management (BPM) company. WNS has nearly 40,000 professionals in 14 countries across 59 offices worldwide including China, Costa Rica, India, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States.

We live in the times where robots work next to people. Are the WNS processes already supported by artificial intelligence in your Gdynia based center?

Yes, we live in an increasingly digital business ecosystem. As a leading provider of BPM services, our technology strategy is designed to combine the strengths of process innovation, domain expertise and industry insights to accelerate growth. WNS TRACTM is a consolidated suite of comprehensive, next-generation technology solutions for managing complex business pro­cesses for our clients across industries. WNS TRACTM offers a host of indusThe WNS delivery center in Poland is try-specific and cross-industry technollocated in Gdynia. This center started ogy solutions that are pre-configured in 2012 with focus on Finance and with best practices and drive impleAccounting and Customer Interaction mentation around Social, Mobility, Services. Our team delivers services Analytics, Cloud and Automation includin 13 languages, servicing our client ing Robotics Process Automation (RPA). from the Music & Entertainment, Tech- Our rule-based RPA, defined and executed at the user interface level, drives nology and Travel industries. significant productivity improvements Who are your customers usually? Are with enhanced processing speed and those international entities or do you accuracy. It functions 365x24x7, and has the flexibility to handle volume varalso serve customers from Poland?

WNS delivers an entire spectrum iations. We combine our deep domain of BPM solutions including industry-spe- knowledge, technology and analytics cific offerings, customer interaction ser- expertise to solve our client problems. vices, finance and accounting, human resources, procurement, and research What competences are you looking and analytics to re-imagine the digi- for among the candidates you employ tal future of businesses. Our clients are on a daily basis?

There are multiple employment opfrom different industries including Travel, Insurance, Banking and Financial portunities in the BPM industry, as it caServices, Manufacturing, Retail and ters to multiple clients across verticals Consumer Packaged Goods, Music and and functions. Therefore, candidates are Entertainment, Technology, Shipping sought in roles such as consulting, analytics, operations, corporate etc. Roles and Logistics, Healthcare, and Utilities.

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can be across diverse areas. From simple graduates to specialized talent like lawyers, engineers, actuarial, doctors and Chartered Accountants this sector employs across spectrum of talent.

At WNS, our talent practices are focused on developing “T-shaped” professionals – where we believe the center is the ‘I’, that stands for the individual and the three points of the “T” represent domain expertise, technology knowledge and sales orientation. We believe that the future belongs to specialists of every kind (across functions and industries).

Looking ahead, what are the WNS development plans for the next 12 months?

WNS has delivered solid financials in terms of revenue, margins, profits and cash flow, so far. The company will continue to invest in driving differentiated positioning in the BPM marketplace, and the company remains committed to ‘co-creation’ with its clients, to deliver long-term sustainable business value for all of our key stakeholders. WNS has built tremendous domain knowledge in every industry vertical that we operate in.

Going forward, the company will look at profitable growth including organic and strategic acquisitions, as they present themselves and continue to make investments in domain capabilities, technology enablement, embedded analytics, skill development to have future ready talent, geographical expansion, sales and marketing to deliver business outcomes.

Thank you for the interview.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

At WNS, our talent practices are focused on developing “T-shaped” professionals – where we believe the center is the ‘I’, that stands for the individual and the three points of the “T” represent domain expertise, technology knowledge and sales orientation.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

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SSC

THE LION BREAKS BARRIERS AND BUILDS BRIDGES

Word of admission: SSC Lions is a new project run

by Pro Progressio and focused on the communication support provided to Shared Service Centres.

On O ­ utsourcing&More Magazines’ pages, we will present business cases and interviews with leaders of Shared Services Centres, industry experts and consultants.

Our interlocutors will provide the answers to the questions related to best business practices, project manage­ ment and employer branding.

In current edition of SSC Lions, we present the real Lion of the SSC industry.

Our guest is Marek Szul, Senior Director of Operations at Lionbridge Poland.

Full version of this interview is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

Full version of this interview is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

BUSINESS

TOP 8 TIPS

TO HELP YOU FIND THE PERFECT NEARSHORING PARTNER

How to obtain benefits of having SSC, with limited risk and limited investment. Can outsourcing be an answer?

The period of transformational change through which many businesses are currently going is unprecedented; globalisation plus Brexit and other protectionist behaviours are proving to be an unwelcome stimulus to financial volatility, and accelerating advancements in technology together with the changing needs of the ever-demanding consumer are all converging to create a perfect storm for businesses globally.

As a consequence, organisations are having to transform themselves in order to stay visible, remain relevant and, of course, continue to be competitive.

This in turn is putting increasing strain on margins where there is already pressure to grow profitability.

Perhaps understandably, mid-market businesses have not been so quick to follow. The set-up costs for establishing an SSC can be prohibitive for mid-size organisations. In addition, such businesses are often unable to conso­ lidate their HR or finance functions at a scale sufficiently needed to achieve the desired benefits. In some cases, employees become disillusioned which can also lead to attrition, exacerbating the problem.

The outsourcing journey can appear just as daunting, especially if you have little experience in strategic sourcing, or indeed have never outsourced before.

Choosing the right partner, deciding what processes to outsource, being locked into a contract and entrusting your brand with a third party often Over the last years large organisa- extends beyond the risk appetite tions have circumvented these prob- of a mid-market CFO or CEO. lems by establishing their own shared service centres (SSCs) in order to consolidate functions and cut costs, or by outsourcing high-volume, standardised processes altogether in order to de-risk, free up capital and focus on their strategic core activities.

44

However, the imperative persists and I’m seeing a growing appetite among more medium-size companies, particularly in Western Europe, to improve efficiencies in their back office. These businesses not only want to reduce costs and improve service, but also to free up time and resources to allow them to focus on core activities or more strategic initiatives. Such businesses are looking at a range of solutions; centralization of operations, automation of processes using techniques like robotic process automation (RPA) or optimization by outsourcing.

BUT WHAT IS THE IDEAL SOLUTION? Of course, it depends on the very specific needs of the client but it is possible to optimize all three.

Nearshoring, when done correctly, can be the perfect bridge between establishing your own SSC and all-out outsourcing. If you choose wisely, the right nearshoring partner can also support you with a range of solutions that allows you to test & learn, then scale appropriately depending on the volume of processes you want to improve, your perceived timescales for benefit realisation and your general appetite towards costs and risk.

Naturally, there are a number of determining factors when considering a nearshoring partner; having a robust contract in place and well-defined Service Level Agreements (SLAs) are essential, but I’ve also listed here a number of additional key areas I recommend CFOs and CEOs consider before choosing a partner.

1. Look for a provider that has a depth of experience in setting up a Shared Service Center, and not just an organisation who can take on your processes.

For example, Frista was itself a Shared Service Center so our leadership team have genuine practitioner experience and inherently understand all the nuances involved in establishing an SSC. This practitioner experience is invaluable.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

45

BUSINESS

Innovative and motivated people will always choose an employer that values continual improvement over the status quo and employees who feel valued, get to make a significant impact by having a wide range of responsibilities and who have direct contact with key decision-makers, generally stick around.

3. Does the provider create an environment that allows you to test and learn? Smaller and mid-size businesses want limited risk and so often don’t want to go all-in from the outset. We allow our clients to test with just a few FTE to start with, and on a contract which can be stopped at any time, allowing them to build their confidence with no risk to their operating models – or to their customers.

4. How skilled in business process re-engineering and automation practices is your partner? Having highly skilled in-house practitioners on process optimisation and management methodologies like LEAN, as well as the capability to even build their own robots shows a partner that is highly vested in future operational capabilities and next practices.

5. The same applies to any specialist platforms upon which your own processes are being administered.

In our organisation we have experts in technological competencies like SAP, Magento, KOFAX, Service Now and various RPA solutions.

6. Depending on your current customer geography you might require access to a multilingual workforce, but if you have plans for strategic growth then this is more likely to become a necessity anyway rather than simply a ‘nice to have’, so it’s worth checking what language capability your partner provider has access to.

7. The last two factors are inextricably linked and also arguably the most 2. Choose a provider who has a strong critical; having a highly qualified and partnership approach to doing busiagile workforce, and ness. If this is your first experience in nearshoring you want a partner 8. A well developed and reliable recruitwho is vested in the relationship. ment process.

How agile are they, are they approachable and accessible at all times, It’s often said that in a crowded marketdo they operate beyond the letter place your people are your greatest of the contract? Are they transparent brand asset, and so it goes without about their costs and pricing models? saying that you want your nearshore Do they share risks and reward? provider to be an extension of that. But In my experience, willingly passing you also need to trust that your provider on a share of the benefits realised from can scale-up as quickly as your circumautomating a process goes a long way stances demand it – and attract the right to establishing trust with a client. talent too.

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In my experience, organisations that also invest heavily in their people are generally able to outperform their competitors. This is because of a number of factors; • such organisations put a lot of effort into creating an environment that provides their people with an opportunity to excel • they consistently achieve excellent employee engagement scores because they involve their people in bringing to life the company vision, values and behaviours • they pay careful attention to how they recruit.

In my opinion, the last point is particularly differentiating. Very few businesses are equally as agile for their candidates and employees as they are with their clients; for example, we accommodate the scope of responsibilities to the person instead of simply sticking to job descriptions. This way we are able to use a candidate’s potential to the maximum.

Innovative and motivated people will always choose an employer that values continual improvement over the status quo and employees who feel valued, get to make a significant impact by having a wide range of responsibilities and who have direct contact with key decision-makers, generally stick around.

So, if you are a mid-market business and you are looking to make process efficiencies, reduce costs or unlock the growth potential in your business by nearshoring, keep these 8 Tips close at hand and use them to help you find a trustworthy, agile and compatible partner provider.

Author:

Szymon Stadnik, Director of Business Service Center, Frista

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

BUSINESS

SHARP DECLINE OF POLISH CITIES IN THE ANNUAL THOLONS RANKING The ranking of BSS destinations presented by Tholons has been increasingly controversial for several years. The changes, which are presented every year by the authors of the ranking, astound even very experienced analysts and industry consultants, especially from Europe.

Full version of this article is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

BUSINESS

New obligations placed on entrepreneurs who are obliged institutions are primarily linked to training their employees in the execution of the provisions of the act.

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PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING Increasingly more often, entrepreneurs are voicing their frustration with how heavily broadly framed economic activity is being regulated. This overregulation applies not only to adopting a large number of legal acts and frequent amendments to them but also to new obligations placed on entrepreneurs. This results in the need to create increasingly more complicated internal procedures and expanding the compliance departments.

Full version of this article is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

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Full version of this article is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

BUSINESS

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE IS IN THE CUSTOMER’S BRAIN! Dr Dimitriadis is the CEO of Trizma Neuro, a leading applied neuroscience lab in Belgrade, Serbia. He is also the Western Balkans Director for the University of Sheffield. He is the coauthor of the books ‘Neuroscience for Leaders: A Brain Adaptive Leadership Approach’ and ‘Advanced Marketing Management: Principles, Skills and Tools’ for Kogan Page London.

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

We are an applied neuroscience lab. This means we are reading brains... on a daily basis!

We are using a variety of advanced devices and scientific methods to measure brain responses when people are exposed to images, videos, messages and real experiences or when they perform specific tasks. What exactly those images and videos are about depends on our clients. We do a lot of work globally on neuromarketing, which means that we show to people websites, online banners, prices, ads, videos etc. and we measure what happens in their brains.

Also, we ask people to visit a supermarket or a bank branch while wearing devices and we measure the whole experience… live and in real time! We also work on NeuroHR, a very recent field, where we measure brains of employees for personal development, leadership skills and well-being in the company.

We are actually pioneers globally in this field.

In relation to call centers operations, we have conducted extensive research in operator-customer conversations using emotional voice analysis software and other neuro methods. We took a very close look at the dynamism of emotions during these conversations and we managed to identify specific emotional patterns related to successful conversations as opposed to unsuccessful conversations. These findings are of profound importance for various practices and companies within companies: First, job applicants can engage in mock conversations during the hiring process, with their emotional management of the conversation being monitored with relevant technology. Those that score closely to the pre-defined success patterns will have an edge for getting the job since they are more ready to perform well from the get-go.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Second, real-time feedback on how the conversation goes emotionally while the operators talk to the customer, can empower operators to change their approach as needed and steer the conversation closer to the success patterns.

Third, performance management and supervision of operators becomes more scientifically-based with concrete feedback on a daily basis on how their conversation approach matched the success patterns or not.

the decision appears in our mind. We then just read it out and try to explain it. But even the explanation might be completely irrelevant because we do not have conscious access to the reasons of why the brain decided something.

A notable example of this, is with one of the operators used in our initial study of call center conversations. She was a stellar performer in collections, with the majority of her calls resulting in payments. Analysis showed that her subconscious brain strategy for success was the following:

Fourth, specialized training can be delivered periodically to improve opera­ tors empathy and emotional performance techniques.

• starting the conversation by distancing herself emotionally from the task • then suddenly, pressuring the person Sometimes people claim that research to pay in marketing has been advancing • at the very end, softening up for decades now, with focus groups, by offering help. surveys and online panels used extensively around the world: so why do we However, when asked to discuss her need neuroscience? All these methods success, she replied: I start friendly and mentioned capture the declarative, then I need to pressure people to pay. But or conscious, responses of people. this was not the whole story. Her actual This is not enough anymore. More brain strategy was hidden from her! This than 95% of all brain processes, deci- is why modern neuroscience is a revolusions and behaviors are subconscious! tion. As human society we are not fully This means that the stories we say ready yet to accept the scientific truths to ourselves and to others do not give of how our brain really works. But when the whole picture and do not explain we do, we will be able to design more what we do and why. This is a major brain-friendly systems and experiences finding in modern neuroscience that that will benefit all involved!  has the power of changing completely the way we view humans. Actually, we Author: don’t take a decision, but our brains do it for us up to 11 seconds before we are even aware we need to take a decision!

This is the most profound and most hidden scientific fact of our times: our subjective experience of taking deciDr. Nikolaos sions consciously is an illusion. It feels Dimitriadis, Chief Executive real, but it is just a feeling. In reality, Officer, Trizma Neuro the brain decides seconds before

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BUSINESS

FROM A START-UP TO BEING AT THE FOREFRONT OF PERSONNEL CONSULTANCY COMPANIES IN POLAND Interview with Andżelika Majewska, Vice-President of the LeasingTeam Board, and Maciej Majewski, President of the LeasingTeam Board.

Outsourcing&More: LeasingTeam’s pre­­­sence in the Polish job market spans 15 years. You’ve evolved from a small business into a large-scale, advanced organization. What were the beginnings like?

Andżelika Majewska, LeasingTeam Vice-President: We started out at a time when Poland’s unemployment rate had been at a record high, as much as 20%. To combat this difficult situation, the government passed a legislation on temporary workers on 9 July 2003. Back then, in April of 2004, no one had confidence in temp work, and so to our first, major clients we would offer a service involving a series of nationwide, dispersed training sessions. And then, in a matter of months, one of these clients made us an offer we couldn’t refuse. The client had asked us to lease over 100 employees. This was both a huge challenge and an opportunity that we just couldn’t pass up on.

Growing a company involves having to face operating challenges on the one hand, and financial challenges on the other.

What was your growth like over the following years?

Maciej Majewski, LeasingTeam President: We began as a start-up with no industry connections or external financing support. We owe our success, first and foremost, to a persistent pursuit of goals and the great care we take to ensure we provide the highest level of services. The market took note and we ended up growing by 1000% in only 5 years. We would double our sales from one year to the next to record PLN 100 M in revenues and a headcount of 100 in 2010. In another 6 years, we made You provide services in a number significantly more than PLN 200 M of HR areas. How did you go about exin revenue and increased our head- panding your range of competencies count to over 150. Today, we are in this industry? a fully-fledged business that comA.M.: Initially, LeasingTeam’s core petes against the largest multina- business used to be temp work services tional HR services companies op- and payroll & HR. However, as the market erating in Poland, who have had began transforming, our clients would dozens of years to build their ex- increasingly more require permanent reperience and have relied on for- cruitment services. To address this, we eign financing. formed a business in 2011 called LeasingTeam Professional, specializing in recruiting for mid & senior level positions.

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In the following years, the market saw a major shortage of IT professionals.

Naturally, our business evolved in that direction. In 2015, we formed a business dedicated to providing services to the IT industry, called IT LeasingTeam. Our strategy wasn’t limited to sourcing talent, in fact, we went a step further by providing our clients with specific IT products and services, and even helping to outsource whole IT departments and building HR strategies.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

In 2016, our group of companies expanded to include the Wrocław-based CPC Consulting Group, who provide crossborder employee posting from Poland to Germany, Austria and Norway. In the meantime, we worked to produce strong growth of LeasingTeam – the mother company – which in addition to providing temp work services began providing process and function outsourcing and recruit foreign workers from the East.

What does LeasingTeam Group specialize in today? With so many business areas, how do you manage to bring them all together?

M.M.: We formed LeasingTeam Group in 2016 to underscore the fact we provide a comprehensive range of services. Our skillset means we are able to complete multidimensional and strategic projects, engaging experts from the Group’s different businesses, as well as once-off recruitment projects. In other words, every one of our businesses specializes in a predefined area of HR, and when combined, they form a dream team, capable of completing the most demanding and multi-faceted projects.

This strategy means we are able to provide services to companies with diverse needs and of varied sizes; from Poland’s smallsized businesses through public enterprises, all the way up to international corporations.

Out of all the projects you’ve worked on to-date, which ones would you consider to be the most interesting or the most challenging?

A.M.: Over the past 15 years we areas being tracked by the client are have completed multiple projects job completion time and reactivity. of various complexities. To give you When on top of this we add the fact this an example: between 2009 and 2017 service involves temp work for a manuwe were a provider of outsourced ser- facturing plant and process & funcvices to Poland’s and Europe’s leading tion outsourcing for warehousing telecom company, helping to fill near- work and loading and unloading work ly 150 different vacancies in stores, in a high-storage warehouse, you get inside a call center, in administrative to truly appreciate how advanced this and technical support departments, project really is. across the whole country. We started out by outsourcing 50 people to Beyond know-how and experience, eventually get to outsourcing nearly to warrant completion, projects as 1,800 employees. demanding as this also require the right tools. What’s your definition The other key step in our company’s of modern HR? history was when we had won a conM.M.: Modern HR nowadays is tract in 2014 to outsource over 400 about effective strategies, innovative employees to one of the state-owned tools and employment formats, flexienterprises. The two-year contract ble solutions and dynamic operations. proved complex and multidimen- This is evident in permanent recruiting sional and required broad legal exper- where cutting-edge recruitment methtise, excellent organizational skills and odologies and recruiter support tools extensive experience. All these things have to be used when sourcing talmeant we were able to deliver on our ent. Automation helps with candidate objectives 100%. searching & screening, with job advert publishing, with recruiter workplans And finally, one more project that’s and with tracking of the whole process worth noting. It involves providing to ensure it’s effective. year-round services to a FMCG client, whose seasonal headcount fluctua- RPO or Recruitment Process Outtions can be anywhere from 100 up sourcing is increasingly more popular to even 800 workers per month. This in this market. Is this also something is no small challenge for an employ- your company is involved with? ment agency, particularly when we A.M.: That’s right, we have been only get several hours to complete providing RPO services for a number a job, while the key performance of years now under our Professional

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

brand. Our clients in this area include, among others, SSC/BPO or financial industry enterprises. With the market undergoing dynamic changes, recruitment outsourcing is gaining in popularity as true support to in-house HR departments. The RPO provider shares its know-how and experience while a dedicated team of professionals devotes 100% of their time to the client. Ultimately, in spite of this being such a tough market, companies are guaranteed access to the professionals they require and get to optimize their costs in the process.

Finally, where do you see the LeasingTeam Group in the next 5 to 10 years?

A.M.: LeasingTeam Group has set an ambitious goal for itself: it aims to become a HRM leader in the area of intelligent solutions. You won’t have to wait decades to see this happen. To achieve this goal, we are working today to develop an innovative candidate and client platform which will significantly speed up recruitment processes and better match employees to specific organizations. But that’s not all. We’re planning to expand internationally by opening offices in Europe (Germany, Ukraine) and broadening the range of geographies we recruit workers from. We are already hiring people from remote countries, like Moldavia, Nepal, India, Azerbaijan and even Vietnam increasingly more. As to what directions we aim for next, the market is bound to find out shortly.

Thank you for the interview.

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INVESTMENTS

INVESTMENT NEWS GENERALI REAL ESTATE ACQUIRES PIĘKNA 2.0 OFFICE SCHEME IN WARSAW Generali Real Estate, on behalf of Generali Europe Investments Holding (GEIH) Fund, has acquired Piękna 2.0, a landmark office building in Warsaw, from an in­­­vestment fund advised by Griffin Real Estate. This prestigious property further strengthens Generali Real Estate’s managed portfolio in Warsaw, which includes the KroLEWska building, Senatorska 18 and Plac Małachowskiego amongst others.

Piękna 2.0 is an eight-storey building with approximately 15,800 square metres of high quality office spaces, complemented by high street retail units at ground floor.

Built in the early 2000’s, it recently underwent a major refurbishment and currently has the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) as the anchor tenant.

It is located in the very heart of Warsaw on Piękna Street, close to Konstytucji Square, the Polish Parliament, many embassies and government buildings, and it is wellserved by public transport.

This transaction is in line with Generali Real Estate’s strategy of investing in the major European cities, with a focus on prime office, high street retail and retail assets.

It also illustrates once again the company’s strong focus on Central and Eastern Europe, where Generali Real Estate currently manages a portfolio worth around € 1 billion. JLL acted as the commercial advisor of Generali Real Estate, who was also advised by White&Case, PWC, Baker McKenzie and Gleeds.

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CRESA ACQUIRES PSG Cresa, the world’s largest occupier-centric commercial real estate firm, today announced it has completed the acquisition of Portfolio Solutions Group (PSG), a full service lease administration, accounting and abstracting services company. It will be renamed Cresa Lease Administration (CLA).

Jeffrey Tosello, managing partner and founder, and Meredith Kern, partner, will remain at the helm of CLA, reporting to Jim Underhill, CEO, Cresa.

Cresa clients will be integrated directly with CLA’s technology-based platforms.

CLA offers a wide range of services, including Lease Database Consulting, Document Collection, Data Extraction, Audit, Database Population, Support and Portfolio Strategy for companies in multiple sectors, including Office, Industrial, Retail, and Healthcare. The lease administration acquisition presents opportunities to integrate processes and technologies with other core Cresa services, providing an end-to-end solution for Cresa’s clients.

Formed in 1999, PSG has 20 years of dedicated lease administration experience. With 20,000 leases currently under management by its 40-person team, they represent more than 350 million square feet of space and bring a portfolio of new clients into Cresa. PSG is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

WARSAW – THE CITY OF STARTUPS For a couple of days Stefan has been guiding beginner entrepreneurs through the rich Warsaw startup eco-system.

Where exactly can you find him? In the latest free guide entitled Warsaw – the City of Startups – available in Polish and English, both in printed as well as online versions.

The guide was commissioned by the Centre of Entrepreneurship Smolna, and reflects the substantive cooperation between ReaktorWarsaw and Business Edge, a B2B marketing agency.

In making their journey to the world driven by the idea of creating a unicorn, i.e. a billion-dollar-worth business, the readers are accompanied by Stefan who offers his sound advice on where to go, to rent an office, to establish business contacts, to undergo training, to present a business idea that will revolutionise the market, and to find the necessary funds.

The second edition of the startup eco-system guide, titled Warsaw – the City of Startups was released two years after its first edition. The publication responds to the needs of future and young entrepreneurs searching for information about the means to establish a startup, develop their business idea and finance its implementation.

– We have decided to combine the eco-system guide formula with a startup creation manual – said Michał Olszewski, Deputy Mayor of Warsaw.

– While the new edition was meant to supplement the previous one, we also intended to make its contents and appearance slightly different. We have made effort, jointly with Business Edge, to ensure that the new guide reflects the actual status of the Warsaw startup environment, offers practical advice and is attractive to readers – said Borys Musielak, Co-founder of Reaktor.

Warsaw – the City of Startups in numbers

The 80-page-long richly-illustrated guide outlines the major initiatives and support organisations, events targeted at startups, acceleration programmes and investment funds, along with comments made by several startup founders and their mentors.

18 INFRASTRUCTURE

Look into the world of startups 56 How do higher education institutions 50 support startups?

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80 pages 11 comments by mentors 9 success stories <20 cyclical events 25 capital funds and crowdfunding sources 14 acceleration programmes and much more useful and fascinating information!

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The ‘Warsaw – the City of Startups’ guide is one of the City’s initiatives to promote the startup eco-system. It presents the opportunities available in the Capital City, encouraging future entrepreneurs to pursue their ideas right here.

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• • • • • • •

What should you know before you begin?

Where to get the money?

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Getting your bearings Who is a startup founder?

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Where to meet?

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Corporations and startups

Getting your bearings

#TechWawa 19

Will I be able to find a desk to hire in a place where, over a cup of coffee, I will be able to talk about my business ideas with like-minded people? Where is this Warsaw startup ecosystem based? I am looking for organisations that will share my enthusiasm for innovation. I would also like them to give me access to a space in which I will be able to work on streamlining or modifying my idea. In any case, I need a computer, Internet access, and coffee!

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

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FOR 17 YEARS, WE HAVE BEEN CREATING SPACE... OVER 150,000 M2 OF WORKSPACE… OUR SPACE IS BUILT AS FRIENDLY AS CAN BE, FOR PEOPLE AND THE ENVIRONMENT – USING THREE-TIMES FILTERED OUTSIDE AIR, RECYCLED AND REUSED CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS, RAINWATER TANKS FOR PLANT IRRIGATION AND EQUIPMENT REDUCING POTABLE WATER USE BY HALF. OUR SPACE SEES GREAT IDEAS COME TO LIFE. ACHIEVEMENTS, LARGE AND SMALL, CELEBRATED. PEOPLE AND BUSINESS, GROWING. FRIENDSHIPS MADE. EXECUTIVE SUMMARIES, MILESTONES, ASAPS, DEADLINES AND EPIC FAILS COMMITTED ON A DAILY BASIS. WE HAVE CREATED SPACE THAT BRINGS PEOPLE TO IMPORTANT EVENTS. A PLACE FOR BUILDING NEW RELATIONS, EXCHANGING IDEAS, GAINING NEW SKILLS, DEVELOPING HOBBIES AND INTERESTS, LEARNING, SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT – TORUS LINK. TODAY, WE WANT TO GO A STEP FURTHER. WE WANT TO LOOK AFTER THIS SPACE FOR US AND FOR THE FUTURE GENERATIONS. FOR OUR IMMEDIATE AND SURROUNDING ENVIRONMENT – CLEAN AIR, OUR FLORA AND FAUNA. WE BELIEVE THAT, TOGETHER WITH YOU, WE CAN ACHIEVE THIS. …BECAUSE WITHOUT YOU, IT WOULD BE JUST AN ORDINARY PEACE OF SPACE …

INVESTMENTS

BRAMA MIASTA MODERN OFFICE BUILDING IN DEVELOPING LODZ

Lodz is becoming more and more attractive for new employees.

The city is undergoing a continuous process of development and revitalization. New investments are being undertaken, and the service sector is growing rapidly. According to recent data, over the past two years the number of people working in B2B services (BPO, SSC, IT and R&D) has grown by 5.5 thousand, reaching an impressive total of over 20 thousand employees1. In response to this upward trend, modern office buildings are being constructed in Lodz.

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Business Services Sector in Poland 2018, ABSL.

The most prominent business hub in Lodz is Nowe Centrum Łodzi (eng. New Center of Lodz). This multi-faceted urban project keeps growing at a stunning rate.

Developers are launching or announcing new projects, city officials are constantly broadening the EC1 (center for culture, arts and education) offer, and old city buildings, streets and parks are being revitalized. The construction of a tunnel, which will connect the Kaliska and Fabryczna Stations, is set to start soon. Nowe Centrum Łodzi will become the connection point of eastern and western Poland and it will be perfectly connected to the European capital cities.

Nowe Centrum Łodzi offers modern office space which attracts the best employers. Shared services companies, for which good location in a particular city is equally important as easy communication with different urban centers, find it especially well-suited to their business needs. It is here that Brama Miasta is being constructed – an office building that harks back to Lodz’s industrial past in its architectural design, while simultaneously providing all the comforts

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of modern technology and interior EMPLOYEE-FRIENDLY design. Thanks to its unique corten TECHNOLOGIES steel facade, Brama Miasta has already Brama Miasta will be the first office building in Lodz to have the innobecome a major landmark in Lodz. vative Connected by Skanska operBrama Miasta is a complex consisting ating system which integrates of two 13-storey buildings, which to- the management of various building gether will provide almost 44,000 sq m functions in a single mobile app.

GLA of modern office space. Up to The app will enable users to move 5,000 employees will be able to work around the building using a smartthere. The complex will be the only phone instead of a traditional access project in Nowe Centrum Łodzi avail- card. It will also allow them to prepare able to tenants in 2019 (1st building) and virtual invitations to the building 2020 (2nd building). for guests and to reserve parking spaces for them. The building will – We hope that the New Center of Lodz have an activity-based parking will become another place in Poland asso- system which will recognize license ciated with Skanska’s office investment plates and allocate available parking projects – this is how it is in Warsaw at spaces. Tenants will additionally have Jana Pawła II Ave. and in Bliska Wola or in the ability to book meeting rooms Wroclaw in the area of pl. Dominikański or control temperature and lighting Square. Nowa Fabryczna, and now Brama via the app thanks to Connected Miasta, are projects that will have a posi- Fit-out system. At the same time, tive impact on the surroundings of Łódź Brama Miasta will be fully adapted Fabryczna Station – we are glad that they to the needs of families, older people are being settled by companies which are and people with disabilities. The space important local employers – said Krzysztof inside and outside the building was Wilczek, Regional Director at Skanska designed in accordance with Fundacja office unit in Poland.

Integracja standards.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Outsourcing&More | Mayâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;June 2019

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INVESTMENTS

BRAMA MIASTA - KEY FACTS AND FIGURES Lease area of the first stage: 29,400 sq m GLA Completion of Stage I: Q2 2019 Lease area of the second stage: 14,400 s qm GLA Completion of the second stage of construction: Q2 2020 Total leasable area of the complex: 43,800 sq m GLA The whole complex will provide 231 parking spaces Certification: LEED Gold, Barrier-free facility General Contractor: Skanska S.A Author of architectural design: medusa group

ATTRACTIVE LOCATION AND EASY ACCESS

easy to reach Brama Miasta by bicycle, scooter, electric car or via car sharing.

Brama Miasta will connect the lively Brama Miasta will be easily accessible Piotrkowska Street with Nowe Centrum to everyone – says Krzysztof Wilczek, Łodzi and Łódź Fabryczna Station. Regional Director at Skanska’s office unit The investment is also close to Trau- in Poland. gutt Woonerf. Direct access to the new railway station, as well as buses and A GREEN PLACE FOR CULTURE trams, will allow future employees AND RELAXATION to easily reach the office building. Skanka’s project will provide a new The project also includes facilities for place for people to meet and spend those who use other means of trans- time together at Nowe Centrum Łodzi. portation. The complex will provide Between the buildings of Brama Miasta, charging stations for electric cars and an open square will be created for a total of 205 places for cyclists, with everyone to enjoy, enabling the organicomfortable changing rooms, showers zation of cultural events such as outdoor movies or exhibitions. An atmospheric and bike maintenance station. patio, green spaces, street furniture – Brama Miasta is our third investment as well as numerous cafes and restauin Lodz and the second to be an essen- rants will make Brama Miasta a perfect tial element of the constantly growing place for business and social meetNowe Centrum Łodzi. A well-developed ings. It will be used by the residents public transport service which allows easy of Lodz, tourists and employees of Nowe access to the building by tram, bus or train, Centrum Łodzi. even from outside of Lodz, is an important advantage of this part of the city. UNIQUE ARCHITECTURE Convenient location and the solutions The facades of both buildings will be implemented in our investment make it covered in corten steel which has not yet

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been used on such a large scale in Lodz.

It is a stainless steel covered with patina in a red color that refers to Lodz’s industrial past. The walls of both office buildings facing the shared courtyard will be glazed. This will make Brama Miasta seem like one building that has been cut in half to allow newcomers entrance to the center of the city.

Once Brama Miasta is complete, Skanska office buildings in Lodz will accommodate a total of over 10,000 specialists.

Numerous multinational corporations such as Infosys, Cybercom, Fujitsu and Whirlpool have already chosen Skanska offices in Lodz.

Author:

Anna Rolka-Zawadzka, Leasing Negotiator, Skanska office unit in Poland

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

INVESTMENTS

IS YOUR BUSINESS READY FOR AUTOMATION? The technological advancement is clearly something we all see around us. From small objects like sensors to more significant things that work with artificial intelligence algorithms, we are surrounded by automation and efficiency. In many industries and departments, automation is core to their activities, and nothing is surprising when we see them in action.

The same thing happens now with marketing activities.

Full version of this article is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

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Outsourcing&More | Mayâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;June 2019

Full version of this article is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

INVESTMENTS

ENGINEERING GBS IN LITHUANIA: GROWING AND DIVERSIFYING WITH EACH NEW ARRIVAL

With Global Business Services, growth doesn’t just mean getting bigger.

It’s as much about deepening the quality and range of services offered as it is about increasing scale. This is certainly the case with Lithuania.

Full version of this article is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

Full version of this article is available only in paper edition of Outsourcing&More magazine or on the Pro Progressio website.

INVESTMENTS

A TOUCH OF SCANDINAVIAN HYGGE STYLE Vastint is transforming the lobbies of its Business Garden buildings beyond recognition. Instead of sterile interiors, tenants’ employees and visitors will be welcomed by friendly and cosy spaces that are in harmony with the innovative spirit and warmth of the office parks.

The new lobby design has been created by turnerbates Design & Architecture, a London-based interior design and architecture studio.

The pilot project has been carried out in the lobby of a Business Garden building in Warsaw. Wood, natural textiles and well-chosen lighting fixtures create a warm and inviting atmosphere. – The interiors are filled with comfortable armchairs, oak benches and free-standing display racks. Paintings by a local artist, inspired by one of the most beautiful parks in Warsaw, Łazienki Królewskie, and digital artwork by turnerbates Design & Architecture, are displayed on the walls. The traditional reception desk has been replaced by a multi-functional writing table supported by a self-service visitor registration kiosk and special zones which may be used by tenants for casual lunches or as a meeting place – explains Ewa Łydkowska, Marketing Manager of Vastint, Poland.

a feeling of cosiness and wellness, and functions as a welcoming and flexible extension of the office. – We wanted to create a place adjusted to the contemporary work style – explains Howard Bates of turnerbates, who specialise in commercial design and architecture. – Presently, mobile working and co-working are becoming increasingly popular, and there are more and more people for whom an office is any place where they can connect to the Internet.

We wanted the new lobbies in Vastint buildings to be perceived as attractive and friendly spaces where you can relax, drink coffee and hold less formal business meetings.

go to popular coffee shops. We offer them an attractive space where they can go at any time. This solution harmonizes well with the perfectly arranged space surrounding the Business Garden office buildings.

The lobbies will be implemented in all of Vastint’s office parks in Poland over the next few months and will be attractive spaces that encourage employees and visitors to dwell and spend time in the lobbies.

INDIVIDUAL CHARACTER

One of the main intentions was to create uniqueness within each lobby. Common design elements A BREAK FROM THE OFFICE distinguish the Business Garden inteThe new lobbies are relaxing spaces riors, but elements inspired by local where office workers may move with surroundings give each lobby a unique, their laptops flexibly and in less formal individual character. For example, The new lobbies will no longer be surroundings. – We wanted to create the lobbies of the office buildings just a space you pass on the way a place where you can take a break from in the capital city refer to the Old Town to the reception desk in order to quickly the daily office routine without having and the gardens near the Royal Castle take the elevator to the right floor. to leave the building – explains Howard in Warsaw. turnerbates have used The newly developed design makes refer- Bates. – Looking for a little peace and as many fit-out elements from local ence to the Danish concept of hygge, a change of scenery, many office workers suppliers as possible, and artwork has

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Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

been sourced from local artists, such as the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts.

However, the whole concept is based on Scandinavian design, which is easily recognizable by the muted, natural colours and finishing materials selected by turnerbates. The new lobbies are also designed to absorb sound, using materials like wood. These small details aim to increase satisfaction from the workplace and encourage a heightened sense of wellbeing and increased efficiency from tenants’ employees.

Hence, the individual approach of the designers to lighting and interior fittings is completely unique to Vastint Business Gardens. The lobbies have different areas and are illuminated according to their function, so there are no two identical spaces; some areas have larger tables to hold meetings attended by more people, other areas contain lounge chairs, rugs and plants for a more relaxed setting.

However, the designs are characterised by certain common features. For example, buildings within the Business Gardens in Warsaw and Poznań have a digital reception desk, which creates an feeling of openness and transparency. Instead of approaching the front desk, visitors to the Business Gardens will be able to check-in themselves when entering the building using a tablet.

The lobbies are also intended to play yet another important role. In addition to the green gardens surrounding the buildings within the office parks, the lobbies will also encourage sociability among office workers. – While designing the surroundings of the Business Garden office buildings, people asked us whether we intended it to be private for tenants only. For us, it was obvious that it should be a public space – says Howard Bates. – The same is also true about a lobby which is a place to share, available not only to the tenant’s employees but also visitors who live and work nearby – he adds. Author:

Dział marketingu, Vastint Poland

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

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INVESTMENTS

TENANTS SAY:

CHECKING! Commercial space tenants have between a couple of weeks and a few months to check whether their service charges for 2018 were correctly calculated.

As a rule, service charges are paid by tenants monthly as advance payments and settled when a calendar year has ended. Tenants should have received service charge statements for 2018 by now. Property managers usually deliver such statements by the end of the first quarter following the accounting year.

Now is the time (between two weeks and three months, depending on lease provisions) in which tenants may communicate that they want to check the costs of a landlord’s services for which they pay service charges. After that time, property managers may deny them access to invoices, bills or subcontractor agreements.

YOU GET WHAT YOU’VE AGREED TO The tenant’s liabilities under an office lease agreement include rent, service charges and reinvoiced utility charges.

– When it comes to signing a contract, tenants usually focus on the first item and somewhat pay less attention to service charges – they are generally happy to know the amount of advance payments – says Artur Sutor, Partner and Head of Office Department at Cresa Poland.

– Service charges are, however, a heavy financial burden for tenants, averaging 20-25% of the base rent. What’s more, imprecise or unclear lease provisions may

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open doors to malpractice and such interpretation of vague provisions that will put the tenant at a disadvantage. That’s why in order to avoid the risk of running into high costs in the future, it’s best to make sure before you sign a contract that it clearly sets out what you as a tenant pay for and how costs will be charged.

PRECISE PROVISIONS WILL PROTECT TENANTS How to protect yourself and what to take care of during lease negotiations? – First and foremost, the lease must state the exact percentage of the tenant’s leased premises in relation to a building’s total area. This information should be clearly set forth in a lease agreement and the landlord should present an easy to understand algorithm used to calculate the tenant’s share of the building’s area and add-on factor. Otherwise, the tenant runs the risk of paying more for his space than necessary and will pay for instance for the maintenance of technical premises – says Łukasz Dreger, Senior Associate, Office Department, Cresa Poland. – The lease agreement should also specify a closed list of items classified as shared costs and settled as service charges. Tenants should also make sure that they pay for their building’s maintenance and running costs only, excluding capital expenses.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

If a tenant decides to check such a statement, he will usually have between two weeks and three months in which to do it – depending on a lease agreement. To review the costs, the tenant will need to see all source invoices from utility suppliers and subcontractors, service agreements, a property tax return, a statement on the municipal waste disposal fee, and the most recent perpetual usufruct fee notice (if the land is not a freehold).

– Calculation of service charges is a very complex matter. A tenant who suspects that it hasn’t been done in line with the best practice should notify the pro­perty manager that he wants to check its accuracy. Although this can be done on one’s own, it could be quite a challenge without a proper experience in this business. Besides, solving disputes between suppliers and tenants may sometimes be problematic; and it’s worth remembering that parties to a lease agreement need to collaborate on a variety of levels for many years. That’s why it is a good idea to consider hiring real estate specialists to conduct a comprehensive audit of service charges. They have the relevant expertise and experience, and can replace the tenant in discussions with the landlord Next year, in service charge statements or property manager, which is particularly for 2019, these items are likely to ac- recommended in more complex matters count for more than 40% of all additional – concludes Łukasz Dreger. costs, the highest proportion on record, due to the freeing up of the electricity market and the contracting of electricity Authors: supplies at stock exchange quotations.

AFTER THE FIRST QUARTER According to advisors of Cresa Poland, service charges can be broken down into nine basic categories: property tax, perpetual usufruct, insurance, property management, technical services, cleaning of common areas, security and reception desk, and other services. As utilities make up as much as 37% of service charges, says Łukasz Dreger, the fairest way would be for the tenant to have separate electricity, water and heating meters mounted and to have utility costs reinvoiced monthly.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

If a lease agreement contains all the required provisions brokered by experienced advisors, tenants will find it a lot easier now. – It is critical that a service charge statement is delivered in a clear and transparent form, preferably in at least two tables: one with shared costs for the entire building and the other with costs broken down according to the tenant’s share of the building area – says Łukasz Dreger. – Unfortunately, procedures vary and tenants very often find service charge statements and calculation algorithms unclear.

Artur Sutor, Partner and Head of Office Department, Cresa

Łukasz Dreger, Senior Associate, Office Department, Cresa

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WHICH COUNTRIES INVEST IN LUBLIN AND IN WHICH INDUSTRIES THEY ARE STRONG? In recent years Lublin enjoys an increased interest of foreign investors, in particular those representing city’s priority sectors, including business services, biotechnology, machinery and automotive.

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Investors’ interest in machinery and automotive industries in Lublin is a consequence of Lublin’s strategy of supporting sectors of substantial intellectual potential and local economic traditions.

manufacturing innovative electronic PC components and flat panel displays.

The modern production site of LCD displays together with a logistics centre of 16,000 sq m are located in Panattoni Park Lublin. As a target, the facility is expected to offer employment to around 250 people. 220 new jobs are to be created at a manufacturing site of Turck developed in an industrial park of MLP Lublin. Turck is a family business appointing more than 4,800 people in 30 subsidiaries and partners’ faci­ lities in 60 countries. The company is a specialist in sensor, fieldbus, connectivity, HMI interfaces and RFID systems.

Out of 35 manufacturing projects implemented lately in Lublin, 9 were examples of foreign direct investments from countries like Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Ukraine, Malaysia, Israel or Denmark. The automotive and electro-machinery sectors are dominated mostly by German capital, but there are also numerous projects originating from Belgium and France. Some of the examples of German investors who decided for Lublin within last year are Data Modul and Turck. Data Modul is a global supplier of visual solutions

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Investors’ interest in machinery and automotive industries in Lublin is a consequence of Lublin’s strategy of supporting sectors of substantial intellectual po­­ tential and local economic traditions.

The fact the city of Lublin focuses on the deve­lopment of automotive sector results from many years of automotive traditions dating back to interwar period.

Competences and experiences of workers of former Truck Factor or Daewoo are successfully utilised by international players from the automotive sector who set up in Lublin.

Creation of positive climate for the automotive industry in recent years was facilitated by infrastructural investments, especially by the Lublin Airport, which became a window to the world, as well as construction of S17 express road connecting Lublin with Warsaw and S19 to Białystok and Rzeszów.

As a reply to signals coming from investors who are reluctant to build their own facilities on greenfield sites, the city

decided to diversify its investment offer and work with global developers like Panattoni Europe, MLP and Goodman on the development of BTS projects.

It is notable that also local players on the real estate market, e.g. TBV Investment or JJK Property, have joined this trend, which resulted in industrial investments of 65,000 sq m that are in preparation now. As a consequence, competitive position of the city significantly improved too, and Lublin became much more attractive to domestic and foreign investors seeking ready spaces for lease. It was one of the reasons why a Bavarian concern ABM Greiffenberger, a specialist in production of innovative electric engines, chose Lublin as a place for the company’s growth.

Greater presence of foreign entities on the Lublin market is intrinsically connected with increased supply of modern office space in the city, which in the last 5 years have more than doubled. Currently in Lublin there are more than 205,000 sq m of high quality office space, mostly A and B/B+ class, while the vacancy rate amounts to 15%.

After completion of projects that are under development now, the supply will grow by another 56,000 sq m. Importantly, average rent costs are about 15% lower than in the biggest cities of Poland. Availability of modern office space in Lublin successfully attracts investors representing business services.

In 2018 alone, Lublin witnessed 6 new investments from BPO/SSC and IT sectors. Thus, it is the BSS that records the most dynamic growth in Lublin – since 2015 a total of 34 companies from this sector invested in the city.

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workforce and people’s language proficiency. Similar reasons guided Lingaro, a specialist in Business Intelligence, Big Data or Data Analytics, which recognised the industry’s huge growth potential in Lublin.

As the largest city and academic centre in Eastern Poland, Lublin is the city of young people. Over 61% of its citizens are in production age, and 27% people have higher education degree. Academic potential and availability of 18,000 graduates fluent in foreign languages entering the labour market each year are a huge asset for international companies from the BSS sector.

Undoubtedly, in the BSS sector Lublin became specialized in IT services.

Over the years, the city has managed to retain 90% of IT graduates in Lublin where they easily find employment at local IT companies. Competitive wages, lower employees’ attrition as compared to the biggest Polish cities, as well as high degree of knowledge of graduates of Lublin’s universities are another competitive advantages of Lublin recognised by foreign investors. Fine examples of this are recent investments of Capgemini and Lingaro. Capgemini, a French leader in consulting, outsourcing and IT, opened its branch in Lublin to support its clients in the field of Cloud Infrastructure Services in English, German, French and Dutch. The company chose Lublin mostly because of city’s rapid growth of IT sector, availability of skilled

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Undeniably, the determining factor for locating investments, in particular those in high technology sectors like BSS or automotive, is human capital, which is the city’s greatest potential.

As the largest city and academic centre in Eastern Poland, Lublin is the city of young people. Over 61% of its citizens are in production age, and 27% people have higher education degree.

Academic potential and availability of 18,000 graduates fluent in foreign languages entering the labour market each year are a huge asset for international companies from the BSS sector.

More than 1,100 students of English philology, 395 of applied linguistics, 369 of Roman philology, over 300 German philology and almost 200 of Spanish philology together with 6,500 foreign students from more than 90 countries prove Lublin universities’ highest degree of internationalisation in Poland, which at the same translates into great potential for foreign businesses investing in Lublin, especially in the context of serving international projects and clients from all over the world.

Investment attractiveness of Lublin is also the output of activities undertaken by the Lublin City Hall aimed at stimulating both collaboration of local businesses and increasing availability of human resources. Examples of such actions include cluster initiatives like Automotive and Machinery Upland, Lublin IT Upland or Lublin Medicine – Cluster of Medical and Wellness Services. The clusters aim to increase the competitiveness of Lublin’s economy through tripartite collaboration of entrepreneurs, academia and local government, for instance by obtaining funds for innovative projects, creating R&D centres etc.

Investors become increasingly open to Lublin municipality’s initiatives aimed at enhancing collaboration between science and business by creating patronage classes, intern-

ships or apprenticeships. Top graduates of technical faculties of Lublin’s universities may expect well-paid job, growth opportunities and professional promotion in many manufacturing companies based in Lublin. During a cyclical conference “Engineers for Lublin” organi­­sed by the Lublin City Hall local entrepreneurs convince attendees that in Lublin there are high quality jobs for specialists in this field and it is worth taking up education in technical fields.

It is because of the consistently implemented strategy Lublin was chosen by companies like Asquini (French manufacturer of components for aviation industry) or Plastic Omnium Auto Inergy Poland Sp. z o.o. (manufacturer of fuel systems from France).

When analysing the countries of origin of inward investments, it can be noted that while the manufacturing sector is visibly dominated by German capital, the business services sector does not have a clear leader and apart from Germany (KS Engineering Technology), investors come also from France (Capgemini, Sii, Orange), the USA (DataArt, Convergys, Genpact, Team International), Italy (Generali), Switzerland (Impaq) or Great Britain (Phlexglobal, Mobica). More than a half (53%) of employees in the BSS sector work for the companies with foreign capital, mostly from France, the USA and Italy.

However, Lublin is not only about business. It is a diverse and friendly city boasting a Smart City certificate and proud of one of the highest quality of living indicators in Poland. Investment attractiveness of Lublin also results from city’s traditions of multiculturalism and pluralism, which are reflected in unique openness and tolerance of Lublin’s citizens. This, in turn, translates into high level of safety in the city.

More information:

Łukasz Goś Director of Investor Relations Office Lublin City Hall Phone: +48 81 466 25 42 e-mail: lukasz.gos@lublin.eu

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

hush acoustic ofďŹ ce solutions

INVESTMENTS

METAL, GLASS & BPO Today, Częstochowa focuses on the development of industry and business again, but it does not come from the desire to chase the current trends by the self-government. The industry has been present in these lands for a long time and the cleverness and entrepreneurial spirit of the residents allowed them to go through the crisis caused by systemic transformation and the collapse of large production plants. To understand the specificity of the industries present today in the city, we should recall several historical facts.

The metal industry, iron ore processing is the history of this city, it can be said that they gave it a beginning. One of the oldest documents about Częstochowa indicates that in 1377 Prince Władysław Opolczyk gave a colony to the brothers Jasiek and Niczko in the village of Błeszno. This colony was located on the Warta River, more or less in the areas of today’s ISD steelwork. Although this is not the date that started the history of today’s plant, this fact indicates the legitimacy of the steelworks in this place. The area of iron ore in the vicinity of Częstochowa was back then the largest in Poland, which had a decisive influence on the choice of a place for the steelworks, and access to a qualified workforce was

not without significance. In the second half of the 19th century, the industrialist of the Jewish origin Bernard Hantke became interested in these areas. He was involved in the production of metal products: wire, nails, agricultural and gardening tools, chains, etc. In 1896, he started the construction of a steelwork.

The foundations of the huge furnaces were oaks from the Rakowski forest, the swamps and oxbow lakes were drained. As one of the first buildings, a two-storey building of the management was created, now incorporated into the body of the management building at ul. Rejtan. The construction of the steelworks was completed in 1902 when the plant already had a furnace, steelworks and furrow department.

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The long-term domination of the metal industry in the city has resulted in the development of the Częstochowa University of Technology in related fields and a very high level of student education.

Currently the automotive industry dominates in Częstochowa – it is the sector that employs the majority of residents. The largest employer in the industry in the city today is ZF GROUP (Germany).

In 2013, the steelwork produced 114 thousand tonnes of pig iron, 87 thousand tonnes of steel and 81 thousand tons of rolled products.

In 1994–1997, a new steel department was built with a ladle furnace, an electric converter and a continuous steel casting line. Since 2005 Huta Częstochowa belongs to the Industrial Union of Donbas (UKRAINE) and is called ISD Huta Częstochowa Sp. z o.o. It manufactures 85% of all thick plates manufactured in Poland and sells half of the production on EU markets and exports to non-EU countries.

Another worthy mention – historical – production plant is the iron foundry WULKAN S.A. (POLAND) built in 1894

by Seweryn Landau at the Teatralna 5 St. (currently Kościuszki Avenue). He and similar to him entrepreneurs caused that at the beginning of the 20th century Częstochowa was a thriving, 100-thousand-strong economic centre.

The impulse for the development of industry was the construction of the Warsaw-Vienna Railway and the policy of the tsarist authorities, which protected its market against import from Prussia and Austria. The company was initially specialized in casting pots of cast iron because it was not pressed in steel at the time. She also produced an ironing box. In 1895, the foundry employed 250 workers. In 1899, it belonged to the Russian Metal Trade Association Iznoskov Zuckau & S-ka with headquarters in St. Petersburg at Grochowa 5 St. and 400 workers were already working there. Today, in Częstochowa and its surroundings, there are also companies from the industry in addition to the mentioned ones.

SILESIA’s Ocynkownia (GERMANY) and the family-owned STALTIM company operating under the Euro Park Mielec (currently KSSE) are still developing near the “zone” area. In the industry, it is worth distinguishing the family company APJ Sikora Częstochowa, performing CNC processing of small and large production series of details according to customer drawings for the following industries: machine, medical, lighting, automotive,

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furniture and other industries, compe- of the largest conference in Central and ting with their quality on the markets, Eastern Europe, the AutoEvent industry including Japanese market. conference organized by the Polish Chamber of Automotive Industry.

The long-term domination of the metal industry in the city has resulted in The city focuses on the development the development of the Częstochowa of the industry, in the aforementioned University of Technology in related fields area of ​​​​the KSEZ “Skorki”, located directly and a very high level of student educa- next to A1, which is already preparing tion. Although the industry no longer new areas, which will soon be ready for reigns in the city, the scientific base is sale to future investors. an excellent starting point for the city’s activities of educating engineering staff The glass industry in Poland is over for the needs of industry.

100 enterprises. They produce, among others: flat glass and their products, Currently the automotive industry domi- lighting glass and glass blocks. The prodnates in Częstochowa – it is the sector ucts of the Polish glass market are also that employs the majority of residents. excellent insulation materials (glass The largest employer in the industry in and mineral wool) which contributes the city today is ZF GROUP (Germany). to significant energy savings, reducTRW in Częstochowa has existed for tion of pollutant emissions including over 28 years, since May 2015 the com- greenhouse gas emissions. Poland has pany is a ZF Friedrichshafen AG concern. good quality raw materials, well-eduThanks to this transaction, two power- cated human resources, central location ful companies from the automotive and an unsaturated market which gives industry joined together. great potential for the development of the glass industry.

Currently ZF is one of the three largest suppliers of the automotive On this map, Czestochowa occupies industry in the world. In Częstochowa, quite a prominent place. There are two the concern has two production plants large glass processing plants operating (Safety Belts and Airbags Factory), Euro- in the city: a potentate in the producpean Center for Financial Services, Engi- tion of float glass – Guardian Glass (USA) neering Center, IT Center and Global and Stölzle Częstochowa (Germany).

Purchasing Office. In total, nearly 6,500 The history of the second plant is also employees are employed in all Często- the history of the family brand. Producchowa units. Last year, ZF dug the first tion in the “Paulina” steelwork (in honour shovel for the construction of a new of the owner’s wife) began in 1897. plant in Częstochowa Skorki, which is At the beginning of the 20th century, in the area of impact ​​​​ of KSEZ, a factory the glassworks already employed of electronic components will be created, 720 people and the “excise” was which will employ 300 employees, and no longer enough as a source an office building where 240 account- of sales so it exported its production ants will find work. The investment will to Russia and even to the Caucasus and be put into use in 2019.

Persia – today’s Iran. In 2001, company from Częstochowa has joined Stölzle Automotive is developing dynami- Glass Group and, as one factory, they cally in the city, the largest employers have been constantly evolving in all in the industry in addition to ZF Group aspects of production and decoration are today Brembo (ITALY), Exact Systems, since then. Being aware of the growing SGP, Trimsol, Automex, Linex, CGR demand for the best quality glass Poland – a branch of the French corpo- packaging for the cosmetics market ration operating under KSSE, Cooper (Prestige & Beauty market), in 2011 Standard (USA), GST Automotive Safety an optical glass furnace was built, Poland, Sila Poland (ITALY) and many thanks to which the production effimore. Since 2014, the city is the patron ciency increased threefold.

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Częstochowa was the first one to introduce a tax relief for modern office spaces and local university – Politechnika received a subsidy for the SAP Laboratory and created a field of study: accounting in shared service centers.

The authorities of Częstochowa, which has been an industrial city for years, in the 90s of the twentieth century took a different path of development to see the possibilities of using the tourist potential of Jasna Góra.

As time has shown, this direction was a mistake and a city with more than 200,000 residents cannot function like other Sanctuaries in Europe.

In 2014, the areas covered by the status of two Special Economic Zones were established in the city and it can be said that a new chapter in the development of the city began. Along with the intensive promotion of its investment potential the city began to change its image.

Częstochowa was the first one to introduce a tax relief for modern office spaces and local university – Politechnika received a subsidy for the SAP Laboratory and created a field of study: accounting in shared service centers.

Currently, many companies from the outsourcing industry operate in Częstochowa, most of them are companies with Polish capital: LGBS, TeleConcept, Contact Center One, Tellbridge, Polcall, Call Center Inter Galactica, SGP, Work Service, Human Hunter, Havier, Exact Systems and Macro Work.

Also, since last year, a department of Sii company (France) has been operating in Częstochowa. As for the amount of employment in the city, the leader is the SSC and R&D ZF Group (former TRW Automotive) with German capital.

In Częstochowa today, the problem of unemployment has ceased to exist in practice, the deficit for qualified employees is being filled by the inhabitants of neighboring municipalities. Just like in other cities of Poland, migration saves the service capability of enterprises, especially in the construction industry. However, economy in Częstochowa is developing steadily and the diversity of industries protects against dependence on sectoral downturns. The number of people employed in business entities (excluding micro-­ enterprises) increased from 70,805 in 2014 to 75,102 in 2017. The number of jobs in micro-enterprises employing up to 9 people can be estimated at approximately 50,000. The average compensation at the end of 2017 amounted to PLN 3954.16, representing 87.5% of the national average and 88.2% of the average in the Silesia Voivodship.

The value of sold production in 2017 amounted to PLN 18,298.6 million, per 1 inhabitant it increased from PLN 33,414 in 2010 to PLN 43,900, in­­ vestment expenditures in enterprises in 2017 amounted in total to PLN 790,323, including industry – PLN 494,003.

including 25,475 in the private sector.

Micro-enterprises still dominate in the city – 25,048 entities employed from 0 to 9 people. The entities employing from 10 to 49 employees were 1,020, from 50 to 249 there were 210; over 250 employees – 31, including 5 employed over 1000.

Despite the tycoons of the industries mentioned here, it is safe to say that the strengths of the city are family businesses and the SME sector. In 2014 local government decided to facilitate access to the possibility of investing in Special Economic Zones for such entrepreneurs by dividing investment areas into plots even as little as 4,000 sq m. Territorial and economic self-government in the city work together to support the operation of SMEs and family businesses.

More information:

The Investor Assistance Center Department of Regional Development and European Funds City Hall of Częstochowa Waszyngtona 5 Street, 42-217 Częstochowa Phone: +48 34 3707 212, +48 34 3707 213 e-mail: coi@czestochowa.um.gov.pl, fer@czestochowa.um.gov.pl www.czestochowa.pl

Among the industries that plays a signifi­ cant role for Częstochowa, business services are crucial. The local government realizes that the incentive for companies in the sector are modern office spaces and well-educated staff.

Therefore, local government concentrated its activities on facilitating the developers to carry out investments In Częstochowa, at the end of 2018, and cooperate with technical schools there were 26,314 business entities and universities. registered in the REGON system,

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W O R K S PA C E S O L U T I O N S

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Michał Śmiechowicz, the New Director of the Economic Development and International Cooperation Office. Source: Łódź City Hall.

INVESTMENTS

LODZ HAS A NEW STEERSMAN

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The first quarter of 2019 brought personnel changes in the Economic Development and International Cooperation Office in the City of Lodz Office.

Adam Pustelnik, the former Office Director, has decided to continue his career in the private sector – namely in the real estate sector, where he will continue to undertake a number of actions aimed at promoting the investment attractiveness of Lodz. However, Adam Pustelnik has not said his last word in the office yet and, as it was in previous years, will continue to act as an advisor to Mayor Hanna Zdanowska in the field of foreign investments.

Adam Pustelnik’s full scope of duties has been taken over by Michał Śmiechowicz, whose professional past is linked with the world of banking. Śmiechowicz has been involved in banking since 2007 and has been developing his managerial skills for over a decade. He started at BRE Bank before moving to Bank Pocztowy and then Alior. Finally, he worked at Eurobank where, in addition to team management, Śmiechowicz was mainly responsible for building relations on the local market of partners i.e. intermediaries, developers and real estate agencies. As he recalls his career in banking – I stood out with my results and achievements — as evidenced by the constantly expanding territory of activity — until one day I decided to take a direction observed extremely rarely on the market. I decided to move from a corporation to local government administration. – As of January 2019, initially as Deputy and from April 1st as Director of the Economic Development and International Cooperation Office, he was appointed to work in the structures of the City of Lodz Office. His previous experience turned out to be extremely useful as, in fact, he still “operates in business”. He builds

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a brand and manages the sales team, only this time the ‘product’ is broadly understood as a city.

Michał Śmiechowicz has set himself the goal of taking care of the perception and image of Lodz on the national and international arena, establishing new and maintaining existing relations with investors and shaping the best possible atmosphere for living in the city. These are not quantified values although the new director emphasises that he wants to bring as many new jobs as possible to Lodz, help Lodz-based entrepreneurs to develop and make as many good ideas as possible – preferably from academic circles – come true. Śmiechowicz also puts an emphasis on the people of Lodz and wants Lodz Mateusz Sipa, the New Deputy Director.

Source: Hall City of Łódź. to be perceived as the perfect place to study, work and live — not only in the eyes of Poles, but also foreigners.

Development and International Coope­ This is not the only personnel change ration Office of the City of Lodz Office, that took place in the team respon- the past few months have been full sible for servicing investors in the City of work but have also witnessed of Lodz Office. Mateusz Sipa became the finalisation of some interesting Deputy Director of the office dedi- investment projects. In April, Orange cated to new economic initiatives and opened a new branch in Ogrodowa which is responsible for determining Office. The company will create 500 new new paths of development for the city jobs in its new headquarters. The second in terms of attracting investors. This major investment was the official former colleague of Adam Pustelnik has opening of the office of Digital Workbeen present in the structures of the City force, which is growing more and more of Lodz Office since 2015. Sipa is a grad- dynamically in the field of RPA (Robotics uate of the Faculty of Law and Admini­ Process Automation). Digital Workforce stration at the University of Lodz and already uses its experience to support of the Warsaw School of Economics. Nordea Bank (amongst others) but As a legal adviser, he gained experience through the development of the new in several law firms based in Lodz. operating centre, it is planning a significant increase in its activity in Lodz, For the new director, his deputy director which is connected with the creation and the rest of the team at the Economic of new and attractive jobs.

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INVESTMENTS

This is not the end of the information regarding new investments in the capital of the Lodz Voivodeship. Another entity that appreciated the attractiveness, but also the geolocation of Lodz, is Pieter Smit Theater Rock Polska. It is the largest European company in the concert and entertainment industry, providing transportation services related to cultural events where the majority of customers are European theatres, operas and orchestras. Its services are already used by the Krakow Opera, Alan Walker, Deep Purple, the National Philharmonic, Live Nation and Zurcher Theater Spektakel.

the joint presentation of Warsaw and Lodz as one large and complex business centre in Poland and Europe. Both cities are one of the largest metropo­ litan areas not only in Eastern Europe, but throughout the European continent. All of the above-mentioned projects prove that Lodz is a good direction for business development.

Another piece of information from recent weeks deserves attention is that Fujitsu Technology Solutions, an IT company that has been associated with Lodz for many years, has been recognised as one of the most desirable employers in Poland (third The Lodz real estate market is constantly place in the ‘Randstad Employer Brand developing. For several years now, Research’ ranking). the city has been a construction site for many large companies operating mainly The first four months in the world of busiin IT and BSS sectors. The company ness in Lodz have been a time of very interested in the new ‘Imagine’ office active operations, by both the compaproject is Asseco – the European leader nies themselves and the Economic in the IT industry that have decided Development and International Coopto move to this modern office building eration Office of the City of Lodz Office. developed by Avestus Real Estate.

It seems that the new ‘steersman’, Michał Śmiechowicz, will have many New office projects are part of a broader opportunities to continue the mission initiative referred to as Duopolis, i.e. started by Adam Pustelnik.

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More information: Business Development and International Relations Bureau Piotrkowska 104a Street, 90-926 Lodz Phone: +48 42 638 59 39 Fax: +48 42 638 59 40 e-mail: boi@uml.lodz.pl

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

FOREIGN INVESTORS TRUST IN BYDGOSZCZ The modern and dynamically developing business services sector in Bydgoszcz has attracted many foreign investors so far. Almost half of the business service centres operating in the City have their headquarters outside of Poland. Companies from France, USA, Great Britain, Finland, Germany, Canada, Sweden or the Netherlands develop their business activity here and employ a total of over 75% of BSS employees in Bydgoszcz (according to the ABSL report “Business services in Bydgoszcz”).

Growing employment in the BPO/SSC sector, already exceeding 10,000 employees, more and more clearly indicates the strong specialisation of Byd­­ goszcz in the IT industry, whose share in the market of business services in the City constitutes approx. 80%.

Bydgoszcz has attracted such global brands as Nokia, Atos, Mobica or SDL and these companies are still developing their branches here. In recent years, most of them have expanded the range of services provided and increased employment in their centres, signaling at the same time realistic forecasts for further development.

An excellent example is Atos Global Delivery Center. While employing over 3,500 people in Bydgoszcz, the company decided to move its headquarters here at the beginning of 2019. During the last year, new branches have also been opened by further investors from the IT industry, such as Meelogic, Sii and Cognifide.

of IT services in the employment structure of BPO, SSC, IT and R&D centres in Bydgoszcz is the highest in comparison to other centres in Poland – says Edyta Wiwatowska, the Chairperson of the Bydgoszcz Regional Development Agency.

The chosen specialisation direction is reflected not only in subsequent investments and increasing employment in the sector, but also in the global successes of companies operating here. One example is the Bydgoszcz branch of Nokia, where BMC (Broadcast Message Center) warning system, used by the US authorities to send the first text message arrest warrant, was used.

On the other hand, the Atos branch operating in Bydgoszcz provides IT services in such prestigious projects as IT service for the Olympic Games.

FOREIGN PATTERNS PENETRATE THE LOCAL STRUCTURES

The presence of foreign capital in companies operating in Bydgoszcz – Thanks to the companies from has an impact on their organisational the IT industry investing here, we culture. Patterns derived from parent managed to create a strong local special- offices or resulting from the global isation. According to last year’s report nature of the organisations, are often prepared by the Association of Busi- transferred not only to the structure or ness Service Leaders (ABSL), the share management, but also to the approach

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to employees, recruitment or cooperation with the local community in which the company operates.

For example, Atos GDC Polska pays great attention to providing equal opportunities for employees and creating an inclusive work culture.

This is confirmed by the distinction from the Great Place To Work Institute, granted to the company for 2018 as a result of the high “Trust Index” that reflects high quality and attractiveness of the workplace culture from the point of view of employees.

In turn, in the Bydgoszcz branch of Nokia, alongside advanced R&D processes, initiatives for the benefit of the local community are being developed, for example in the form of employee volunteering programs or collections for the most needy people from the immediate area.

Employees of the Nokia Technology Center in Bydgoszcz also undertake educational activities aimed at stimulating interest in IT and sciences among women. It was on their initiative that two editions of the “IT Women” conference took place in Bydgoszcz, in which several hundred participants took part.

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The Cybercom branch in Bydgoszcz draws attention to the values related to sustainable development stemming from the Swedish origin of the company. – Swedish organisational culture is more than just popular posters with company values. It is a particular communication and a way how everyone functions in the company day-to-day. At Cybercom, it aligns with the strategy of sustainable development. Being a part of the United Nations Global Compact, we have sustainability in our DNA and want to transfer it into the DNA of our employees – explains Krystyna Hryncewicz, HR Business Partner in Cybercom. – Together we learn that sustainable development is happening here and now. We care for a friendly work environment, i.a. by implementing the Wellbeing program that helps our Makers to break away from the desks and look for a work-life balance – she adds.

HUMAN CAPITAL IS DRIVING INVESTMENTS More and more investors from the BSS sector, both new and those already present in the City, indicate Bydgoszcz as the optimal location for the development of their businesses. The advantages of the City that make up for its investment attractiveness are the convenient communication location along with the international airport, a ready offer of investment areas and modern office spaces, and the “worklife balance” which is in such demand today from both entrepreneurs and employees. On the other hand, it is a high potential of human resources perceived by investors both through a quantitative point of view (Bydgoszcz and the nearest area within a radius of 50 km is inhabited by approx. one million people), as well as their competence and educational opportunities.

here. As indicated by the previously mentioned ABSL report, currently over one-third of students from the Bydgoszcz-Toruń agglomeration are educated in business-administrative, engineering and technical, language and ICT fields, the graduates of which most often find employment in the modern business services sector. A special advantage for investors, especially in the IT industry, is also the technical orientation of education in secondary schools in Bydgoszcz.

BYDGOSZCZ HIGH IN THE INDUSTRY RANKINGS Openness of the City, good climate for new investments, as well as comprehensive support offered by the Bydgoszcz Regional Development Agency, speciali­ sed in providing investment process ­ services in the City, also cause that in numerous international competitions and industry rankings Bydgoszcz has repeatedly gained the title of the most business-friendly city in recent years.

For its contribution to the development of the modern business services market, Bydgoszcz has already twice (in 2016 and 2019) been awarded in the Biznes Polska plebiscite as “Emerging City of the Year”. Recently, Bydgoszcz was also among the leaders of the fDi Polish Cities of the Future 2019/20 ranking.

The Financial Times analytical team – fDi Intelligence – once again took a closer look at Polish cities in terms of indicators proving the attractiveness of foreign direct investment and decided to award Bydgoszcz a distinction in the Top 10 Overall category – Best for Human Capital and Lifestyle.

in the city

Name of the investor: CATTS Poland sp. z o.o.

Country of origin: The Netherlands Number of workplaces: 115+ Company’s residence in the city: Arkada Business Park Sector: Compliance consultancy, Audits &Assessments, Trade management, Training &Workshops and Software enablement Occupied place: over 200 sq m

International relations, rules and regulations are always evolving and today we notice the effects of these shifts faster than ever. We advise companies involved in international trade in setting up global trade programs, regulatory changes and using the latest technology, allowing them to innovate, simplify and anticipate ahead of the curve.

CATTS uses over 120 years of combined hands-on experience in international commerce, customs and trade compliance to deliver practical and reliable advisory

For international companies with a recognised position on the global market, it is important that the environment in which they operate reflects the global nature of their work, while providing access to technical knowledge, skilled resources and excellent infrastructure. All of this is available in Bydgoszcz.

As the largest academic centre in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Bydgoszcz offers entrepreneurs access to human resources with the right competences. More than half of the total number of students in the Voivode- More information: ship is educated at universities located Unii Lubelskiej 4C Street, in Bydgoszcz, and the City and busi85-059 Bydgoszcz ness-related organisations actively Phone: +48 52 585 88 23 support the cooperation of univere-mail: barr@barr.pl www.barr.pl sities and entrepreneurs operating

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New investment

services for the right price. We have backgrounds with multinationals and government authorities, for which we have successfully delivered projects around the globe.

Peter Bulters, CEO, CATTS Poland

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INVESTMENTS

KIELCE: FOREIGN-OWNED ENTERPRISES AND PRESTIGIOUS INTERNATIONAL TRADE FAIRS AS IMPORTANT LINK IN CITY’S ECONOMY Foreign-owned enterprises create a significant segment of the local economy in Kielce. Although the city can pride itself on prosperous Polish-owned enterprises, FDI (foreign direct investment) ones create a considerable number of jobs and are a catalyst for technological innovations. Over time, these innovations are implemented, through cooperative connections, in local small- and medium sized enterprises’ activities.

Construction of a logistics centre called Panattoni Park Kielce is one of the latest foreign direct investment in Kielce.

In 2018, warehouse and production halls of a total pace amounting to 42,000 sq. m were put into operation at the location strategic for this type of activity – at the Kielce Zachód junction along the S7 expressway. Expansion by another 35,000 sq. m is planned at the next phase of project implementation. Kielce’s large enterprises, like VIVE Textile Recykling being the European leader in textile and textile processing industries and its subsidiary – VIVE Transport make use of this modern infrastructure. Logistics operator named Pekaes has also recently opened its logistics and distribution centre, which is successively developing reloading and transporting services for domestic and international shipments.

port corridor between Warsaw and Kraków. Near the Kielce Południe junction, another logistics centre administered by the industrial estate developer 7R is under construction. Consultants of the Investor Assistance Centre at the Kielce’s City Hall confirm that the interest in lands for developing logistics services keeps getting bigger every year:

which provides outsourcing services, is also mostly Polish owned. Medicover, in turn, which owns one out of its two customer contact centres in Kielce, originates from Sweden. Another office was opened in 2016 in Radom due to the need for providing operational security – says Anna Kotula, acting director of contact centre, Medicover Polska. – And, both Kielce and Radom are crucial for us in terms of investing in locations.

– We have a database of investment areas ideal for logistics and manufacturing in­­ dustries – says Karolina Kamińska-Maślarz, a manager of the Investor Assistance Centre. – We are aware that Kielce is sur­­ rounded by several large urban agglomerations, i.e. Warsaw, Kraków, Katowice, Lublin, and that may be an important argument in city’s hands when attracting investors looking for new locations for production and services.

Kielce is a very strong production and industrial centre. Among enterprises operating in the region, those representing the metal and machine sector deserve special attention. NSK Bearings, formerly known as Fabryka Łożysk Tocznych Iskra, is part of the Japanese NSK concern. It produces ball bearings for vehicle frames, engines and power units, among others. Kielce’s branch of NSK Bearings is the largest Kielce is an attractive location for distri- Kielce’s business services sector consists producer of ball bearings in Europe. It bution networks and logistics parks. of enterprises whose vast majority is is worth mentioning that there is also Nowadays, there is a real race to acquire domestically owned. These include well- the European Centre for NSK Technolfurther lands near the S7 expressway known providers of IT services and solu- ogies in Kielce, where well-qualified which runs through the whole region tions – Infover, Trasnsition Technologies engineers work on technologies for and thus creates an important trans- and Comarch. CCIG operating in the city, developing this enterprise. A modern-

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Kielce Trade Fairs and Congress Centre

ised production hall having almost Saab, PSA, VW, BMW, and Volvo Cars 10,000 sq. m is intended for producing in foreign ones.

HUB1 car wheel bearings and hubs as well as cylindrical roller bearings.

Stokota (Belgian producer of cisterns) and Gervasi (Italian-owned enterprise On the basis of SHL company being once specialising in producing lorry dumpers, well-known in Poland (former Kieleckie trailers and bodyworks) also operate Zakłady Wyrobów Metalowych contin- in the city’s manufacturing segment. uing the traditions of Old-Polish Indus- Among the leading producers of equiptrial Region), the Italian CLN GROUP ment for winter road maintenance concern runs manufacturing activities. as well as municipal, airport and agriOne of the Group’s companies – MA cultural vehicles is Aebi Schmidt. This Polska SA specialises in producing extru- German-owned enterprise is present dates, welded and inducted elements, in 80 countries around the world, and as well as in powder and catapho- its plant in Kielce provides employretic painting. Among the company’s ment to several hundred people and key clients there are Fiat Auto Poland has a positive impact on the city’s in the Polish market, and GM Opel, image in the eyes of residents and

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external investors. KH Kipper – a wellknown producer of tipping trailers and semi-trailers – is another automotive enterprise which was established as a result of a merger with the Belgian Stokota. At present, KH Kipper employs over 300 people and produces worldfamous bodyworks for special purposes.

In Kielce, the American capital is represented by XL Tape International which produces professional tapes and other accessories used in the con­­ struction industry. XL Tape has been present in Kielce for 20 years and it certainly belongs to a group of the most modern and dynamically developing enterprises.

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INVESTMENTS

Production halls and investment areas of Kielce Technology Park

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Special attention among the most important points on the Kielce’s economic map should be paid to the Kielce Trade Fairs which gained a lot of prestige and recognition in the trade and exhibition industry in Poland and abroad, and ranks second in the Central and Eastern Europe in terms of the number of exhibitors and rented space. What is more, this is an example of well-invested Polish capital because the company is owned by the City of Kielce. Both Kielce Trade Fairs and Congress Centre located in the same area attract companies with foreign capital to numerous exhibitions, conferences and fairs.

It is great that there has been a number of new investments made by Kielce’s enterprises, both domestic and foreign ones, in recent years. Business-friendly environment is developing, in particular the areas directly administered by the Kielce Technology Park. It is there where the Dutch-owned Tegeno – a producer of tools for packaging machines – develops its activities, as well as Marbach – a supplier of specialised tools for the printing industry, which has its roots in Germany.

Enterprises investing in Kielce may count on the city authorities’ favour and professional support provided by the Investor Assistance Centre operating at the Kielce’s City Hall. Investor Assistance Centre’s services are provided at the highest level, and its consultants customise their services to investors’ expectations. The Centre assists in recruiting staff, engages in searching for offices and other locations, carries out economic promotion activities. It also runs an online Investment Offer Database containing offers of offices, construction sites, production halls, and cooperation projects available at the following website: mapa.invest.kielce.pl. More information:

Investor Assistance Centre Kielce City Hall: Strycharska 6 Street, 25-659 Kielce Phone: +48 41 36 76 571, 41 36 76 557 e-mail: coi@um.kielce.pl www.invest.kielce.pl/en www.mapa.invest.kielce.pl/en

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INVESTMENTS WINNER OF 2019

OUTSOURCING STARS

6 REASONS WHY POZNAN IS A GREAT PLACE FOR IT SECTOR According to the report Investment potential of the IT sector in Poznan prepared for the City of Poznan by the Experis recruitment agency Poznan stands out for a large both economic and labour potential.

Although IT sector is developing quickly in Poznan, there is still a space for new enterprises. Here is six reasons, why it is worth investing in IT industry in Poznan.

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1. LARGE POTENTIAL AND PROMINENT LOCATION Poznan is rated 8th among the most technologically advanced cities in the “Growth Clusters” category according to the CBRE “EMEA Tech Cities” ranking. It reached a 64% increase in employment in IT sector during the last 10 years. According to Forbes Poznan is the 2nd in the ranking of the most attractive Polish cities for business. Poznan also belongs to Gamma category of “world cities” in the Globali­ zation and World Cities (GaWC) ranking.

2. FAST DEVELOPMENT OF IT SECTOR

According to the report of Voivodeship Office of Wielkopolska, “ICT sector on Wielkopolska labour market” ICT sector in the Wielkopolskie region includes 91.8% of companies that provide IT services, 5.6% of firms that conduct activities related to telecommunication and 2.6% – to ICT production. It is important to highlight fast growing of number of enterprises located in Poznan and Wielkopolskie 550,000 inhabitants live in Poznan and region. There were 11,853 registered 1,000,000 residents in the Poznan agglo­ companies in 2017, while in 2018 this meration. Its GDP per capita is € 21,500. number grew up to 12,814 companies, The city stands out for one of the lowest which means almost 1,000 new enterunemployment rates in Poznan – 1.4%. prises have appeared during one year.

It offers to investors 480,000 sq m of office space and currently provides construc- More than a half of all enterprises tion of 118,000 sq m. working in ICT industry in Wielkoposkie Region (53%) are registered in Poznan.

The city is located between Warsaw In addition, Poznan is an essenand Berlin and connected with them tial spot for shared service centres by the highway and railway. It takes only and outsourcing centres, where out 1h 25 min to fly from Poznan to Frankfurt, of 80 business service centres over Munich, Copenhagen and Kyiv. There 30 are related to IT, ITO or IT-oriented are about 20 flights in a week between R&D and another 10 have IT processes Poznan and London. in their portfolio.

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INVESTMENTS

DO YOU KNOW IT COMPANIES LOCATED IN POZNAN? • GSK IT – provide excellent IT services for GSK sites worldwide on a daily basis. Already employs more than 700 people • TomTom – the team in Poznan works on solutions that will allow to launch cars driven by a computer • Beyond.pl – is the biggest and the most advanced data center in the Central and Eastern Europe • Allegro – the largest shopping platform in Poland was created just in Poznań and it is still developing here • Payworks – one of the newest fintech company in Poznan, which already organized Pyrcode Conference for 200 people • Komputronik – leading supplier of IT equipment and consumer electronics in Poland

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The authors of the report Investment potential of the IT sector in Poznan have examined 25 companies from the IT sector in Poznan. The results indicate a rapid development of the IT industry in Poznan. According to the report 92% of surveyed companies plan to expand their teams in 2019 and 8% want to maintain the current number of employees. None of the companies expect redundancies. Taking into account the size of the surveyed com­ panies, the most optimistic employment forecasts are declared by representatives of small (up to 25 employees) and big companies (over 150 employees). Moreover, small (up to 25 employees) and big companies (over 150 employees) plan to increase the number of employees reach even up to 50% of current number of employees.

8 Poznan universities offer IT studies, on which 6,100 students are studying and 1,500 already graduated. Besides, 18 high schools train students for the profession of IT technician, thus there are 1,645 people take the training for the profession of IT technician and 237 people graduated in this field.

3. EDUCATIONAL POTENTIAL

4. HIGH SKILLED LABOUR

Poznan with 25 high schools is considered to be an academic centre, where 1 in 5 inhabitants is a student.

Amount of students and graduates in Poznan is huge – 110,000 students and 30,000 graduates.

Poznan is one the most significant hubs of IT specialists in Poland.

There are nearly 22,400 programmers working here, including among others 3,378 people specializing in Java, 3,823 in HTML, 3,242 – Linux,

Internet of Things, Information Technology in Business Processes, Games and Internet Technologies, Computer Networks, Intelligent Decision Support Systems, Information and Communications Technology, IT Microsystems, E-business, Software Development Technologies, Algorithmic and Pro­ gram­ ming Engineering – it is only a small part of all specialisations at the IT studies offered by universities in Poznan.

5,597 – SQL. Moreover, 4,210 project managers and 1,327 product managers work in Poznan.

88% of surveyed IT companies confirmed that the most effective method to attract new candidates is referral scheme. They also highlight effectiveness of social media (36%) and publishing job offers (32%). In the same time, 100% of companies use social media in recruitment process, 90% operate with referral scheme and 88% – publish jobs post.

92% of employees of surveyed companies confirm that the principal benefit for them is flexible working hours, while 88% pay tribute to the possibility of remote work and 80% of workers indicate sport cards, private healthcare and external trainings as the great benefits offered by employer.

5. LARGE AMOUNT OF WORLDWIDE KNOWN COMPANIES IN POZNAN The last, but not the least argument, why Poznan is a great place of doing business

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in the IT sector is introducing companies, which already invested in Poznan IT industry. There are, among others Apollogic – a company, which has more than 10 years of experience in specialised IT consulting, offering services in ERP, CRM, SRM, Business Intelligence, Big Data and creating and developing business applications, BAE – provides solutions to improve the security and operation of the global network, Computacenter – a British company specialising in remote technical support and also one of the leading providers of IT services, Fabres – outsourcing company, providing services in such fields as Web Development, SAP Consulting and Shared Service Centre, GSK – handles business development and implements new solutions and technologies for GSK worldwide.

Poznan is assessed as a very good (32%) or good (48%) place to carry out a business activity in the IT industry.

84% of the surveyed companies admitted that Poznan is a good place for IT activities and 80% are positive about high qualifications and effectiveness of IT employees. More than a half of the surveyed companies declare that Poznan has a great, however not fully used potential in the IT industry and there is a place for new companies in this field.

– Poznan is a rapidly expanding city which attracts talented young people.

Universities have a competitive education offer that prepares students to work in the IT sector. The city is also a seat for many companies in this sector which are attractive for qualified employees.

All of that gives a wide choice of attractive offers for potential candidates and companies decide to conduct their business in this region – says Wiktor Schmidt, CEO and co-founder of Netguru.

In addition, the IT community in Poznan is proactive, organizes its own meet-ups and engages in well-known initiatives, such as: GeekGirlsCarrots, Frontownia, JUG, meet.js, Agile Poznan, PTAQ (Poznan Testing and Quality), Django Girls Poznan, Hive61, AWS User Group Poland, Poznan Java User Group, Rails Girls Poznan.

More than a half of all enterprises working

Poznan may also boast of the growing gamedev industry – there are 30 gamedev studios in the city, which have already produced about 150 games for various platforms (PC, browsers, mobile, VR).

in ICT industry

Support for the gamedev sector is also provided by the EU project “Developing IT skills among children“, thanks to which students from 10 Poznan schools can use additional maths and IT classes.

centres and outsourcing

A lot of IT companies were created in Poznan as start-ups and now they are successful businesses active nationwide or expanding abroad: Booklikes, Qpony, jakdojade, Legimi, IC Solutions, Omni 3D, Click2go, lubimyczytac.pl, StethoMe, Neptis SA (creator of Yanosik.pl). Currently there are about 200 startups in Poznan that can develop in the first public co-working space in Poland, “Plus Jeden”.

or IT-oriented R&D

in Wielkoposkie Region (53%) are registered in Poznan. In addition, Poznan is an essential spot for shared service centres, where out of 80 business service centres over 30 are related to IT, ITO and another 10 have IT processes in their portfolio.

It is also worth mentioning the importance of diversity in Poznan. The city creates and supports initiatives that promote equal treatment of all residents regardless of gender, age, origin or skin color. Among these projects, they discover a particularly important role: campaigns #MAMYtowCV, #MamoPracujwIT, “Girls as Engineers!” programm, GeekGirlsCarrots and Girls Who Test initiatives, Poznan Mentoring Walk project and Migrant InfoPoint as a support for foreigners.

6. STRONG AND ENTHUSIASTIC IT COMMUNITY Every year, Poznan hosts international events that integrate the IT industry, including: 24th Word Computer Congress, Code Europe Poznan 2018, meet.js summit 2018, FedCSIS 2018 – Federated Conference On Computer Science And Information Systems, PoWUD Conference 2018 – World Usability Day Poznan, Poznan Game Arena – the biggest gaming event in the Central-Eastern Europe, Pyrcode 2019.

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More information:

Investor Relations Department City of Poznań Za Bramką 1 Street, 61-842 Poznan Phone: +48 61 878 54 28 e-mail: inwestor@um.poznan.pl

www.poznan.pl

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HR NEWS COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL APPOINTS REGIONAL DIRECTOR IN LUBLIN Karol Piekarski has joined international advisory company Colliers International as Regional Director in Lublin.

Karol Piekarski is a professional with many years of experience in international commerce. For the last three years he has worked at Lublin City Hall, where as Investor Relations Manager he was responsible for advising investors from the business services sector space. As Lublin’s transport accessibility and supporting the commercialisation improves – the opening of an international of existing office buildings. airport, the reconstruction of national roads 17 and 19 to the standard of high– Lublin, although it is the largest academic ways and the modernisation of the northcentre in eastern Poland, still has a rela- south railway line – we also note increased tively small percentage of the working interest among investors from the indusage population employed in the modern trial and logistics sectors. To meet these business services sector. In compa­ expectations, we will offer a package rison with other cities of similar size, of professional advisory services in Lublin in Lublin the pressure on the local labour covering all areas related to the commermarket is still small, so we see the poten- cial real estate market – comments Karol tial for further employment growth, Piekarski, Regional Director of Colliers and thus increased demand for office International in Lublin.

WALTER HERZ INFORMED ABOUT APPOINTING ANDRZEJ SZYMCZYK Walter Herz informed about appointing Andrzej Szymczyk for the position of Associate Director at Hospitality Department. The development of the hotel department, which was established over a year ago, is a continuation of the process of implementing strategic changes in the company’s structure.

Andrzej Szymczyk joined the Walter Herz team at the beginning of March 2019. He will be responsible for improving relations and development of the company’s business strategy related to the hotel real estate sector in Poland as well as overseeing projects and research connected with this segment of the market.

in the USA on the Atlantic coast and then continued it in London, including such establishments as Hilton London Paddington and The Cumberland, one of London’s largest hotels. He also worked as Sales and Marketing Director at the Narvil Conference & Spa Hotel and the luxurious Pałac Ciekocinko Resort & Wellness hotel, supporting the investment growth of the companies in which he was employed. He was also responsible for the development of meeting. pl start-up, enabling the purchase and organization of on-line events, as well as the development of a sales network of technological solutions for hotel faci­ li­ties of the global Tink Labs company on the Polish and Ukrainian market.

ards related to serving investors from the hotel segment. He will coordinate team’s work related to preparation of forecasts and location and financial analyses, as well as preparing reports on the hotel real estate market. The team has already demonstrated impressive skills in that field, by preparing the latest in-depth report on the hotel market in Łódź.

Andrzej Szymczyk will be responsible, The expert has over 15 years of expe- among others, for executing comparience in working on the hotel real ny’s strategy in the field of investment estate market. He started his career consulting and implementing stand104

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CAREER & DEVELOPMENT

SYNERGY, OPPORTUNITIES, FEARLESS AND TRUST Interview with Agnieszka B. Dąbrowska, HR Manager in SoftServe Poland.

Outsourcing&More: SoftServe has several operating centres in Poland.

How many people do you employ and what processes are they involved in?

Agnieszka B. Dąbrowska, SoftServe: We’ve been present on the Polish market since 2014. At the moment, our team consists of about 340 people in five locations in Poland – Wrocław, Gliwice, Białystok, Warsaw and Poznań. We work with programmers, architects, IT testers, business analysts and project managers.

Of course, we also have business support departments such as recruitment, finance, HR and Internal Communications.

As a company, we’re growing very fast, acquiring new projects and opening new offices.

We’re aware of the fact that our development is possible only thanks to people.

We employed 170 people nationwide in 2018. We’re looking for the best experts in the industry – visionaries, people with passion. By the end of 2019, we wish to expand our team by more than 200 individuals.

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In our work, we use state-of-the-art technologies. We change and optimise the way in which companies around the world conduct their business.

We specialise in providing services in the field of software development in Big Data, IoT, Cloud, e-commerce, IT security or UX. Our team works on platforms and uses programming languages such as Sitecore, Java, JavaScript (Node.js, React.js, Vue.js), Python, .NET, Sharepoint and Ruby.

Our portfolio currently includes several dozen very different projects in the field of e-commerce, medicine, media and finance. Amongst others, we’re working on a modern media platform which may become a real competitor for HBO GO and Netflix on the European market, a service (more extended) equivalent of Polish ePUAP in the Middle East and software facilitating the detection of threats (e.g. burglaries, failures etc.) for IT operational teams in large companies as well as small and medium-sized enterprises. We also support

our clients in the Business Intelligence area and in making strategic decisions based on data from portals such as Facebook and YouTube, Internet TV, internal applications and the sales results of online stores.

SoftServe’s clients include international entities, mainly from the Silicon Valley, Canada and Europe, but also from the Middle East and Singapore.

Can anyone be a SoftServe emplo­ yee? What kind of competences are you mainly looking for?

We believe that employees are the greatest asset of our company, so we build a team of professionals – inquisitive and creative people who are always ready to take on new challenges. We strongly rely on people with business experience and highly developed technical competences. Currently, our most sought-after vacancies include Big Data, DevOps, Python and JavaScript specialists as well as business analysts and project managers.

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SoftServe’s values that form the basis of our corporate culture include synergy, opportunities, fearless and trust.

We’re looking for people who want to work on the success of the company and projects as a team, who want to share their knowledge and inspire and support each other. We’re also very happy to employ people for whom development is important, who are not afraid of new challenges and feel good in a dynamic environment. Mutual respect and trust are equally important to us. Integrity in business and friendships is the basis of our actions.

What is the SoftServe career development process like? Is it possible to work in different locations?

We’re committed to the development of our employees. We therefore strongly focus on acquiring interesting and ambitious projects, defined career paths and the possibility to work with the latest technologies.

There is a so-called SoftServe University within our company. Approximately 30 projects are being implemented there – the intention of which is to support our employees in acquiring new competences. We have our own specialists in e-learning and certification, a language school, boot camps for managers and an intercultural communication centre, etc.

For several years we’ve been successfully implementing a unique approach to employee development. Our system is based on a career map, where each employee can literally ‘click on’ his or her career path. Such a map shows, in a friendly and transparent way, the criteria necessary for promotion, including technical requirements, knowledge of English and the date of the next employee assessment. This tool additionally refers to all the materials necessary to prepare for the evaluation. Such an evaluation is carried out by our internal experts who, in cooperation with functional offices, simultaneously ensure that the competences expected for a given position are comparable in Ukraine, Poland, Bulgaria and the United States.

The possibility of working from a selected location, relocation, or even a change of project or career path, are some of the elements supporting the development of our employees.

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Finally, I’d like to mention an absolutely unique role in our company – Talent Success Lead (TSL). They are people who support our team members in acquiring new competences at every stage of their career.

Today’s IT market is primarily about working on international projects in dispersed teams. Our clients and employees are located in different cities, countries and often even on different continents, working in different time zones. This is a challenge not only for As an HR specialist who has been project managers, but also for the HR following the tools and methods used department. How to effectively dein the process of career planning, ploy an employee who has to travel competence development and emplo- to the Middle East in the second week yee evaluation for several years, I must of his or her work? How to create and admit that I’ve never experienced such maintain the employee’s attachment a clear and user-friendly process. to the culture of the organisation e.g. if he or she works from home and does What was your path to the position not feel the atmosphere of the office of Head of HR at SoftServe? Why every day? the passion for HR? I have over 8 years of experience If you were to share some invaluain working in Human Resources – from ble advice with the people who want start-ups to manufacturing companies to have a future with SoftServe, what and R&D centres to Software House. would it be?

I came to SoftServe almost a year ago We’re looking for people with pasduring a period where both the com- sion who want to develop and grow. pany and the HR department were Show us that you’re ready to learn growing rapidly. I was entrusted with and we’ll be happy to accept you into the task of creating a team that would our team. While in the company, use be able to respond to the needs the tools we give you. Never forget of an increasing number of employ- about people – treat them with respect. ees. We build processes that will prepare our company for an even greater Thank you for the interview.  and more efficient expansion. I’m glad that I can gain experience in the process of change management in a dynamically growing organisation and a very demanding environment.

More to the point, working with people is my passion.

I like to co-create solutions and conditions that motivate others to develop.

Another thing is that when you work in HR, you can’t get bored.

People are so fantastically different; everyday problems are unpredictable and the tasks are so varied.

Working in such an environment gives me a lot of satisfaction both pro­­ fessionally and privately.

What is the biggest challenge for HR departments in IT companies at the moment? Is it easy to build and develop teams of programmers?

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CAREER & DEVELOPMENT

TEST AUTOMATION ENGINEER The IT industry is one of the fastestgrowing job markets, both in Poland and around the world. For years we have been observing steady growth in demand for IT specialists representing specific areas and technologies.

One trend that has been highly visible for years is automation, broadly understood; it especially stands out in the area of software testing. Today, every large organization that has an IT department is aware of the need to invest in a strong Quality Assurance division. Against this backdrop it’s natural to introduce, in addition to standard manual tests, automatic tests as well.

This work is performed by a Test Automation Engineer. Depending on the complexity of the application being tested, the team’s tasks can be very demanding. Each new functionality introduced by the development team means that manual tests are less efficient. It’s obvious that a company wanting to develop its software or products will sooner or later have to invest in people with Test Automation Engineer skills. Additionally, automated tests, as the name itself indicates, are a way of optimizing the process and shortening the time of repeated tests, which makes work significantly easier for everyone involved in producing software.

What competences should a Test Automation Engineer have? Or to put it another way, what distinguishes them from a tester, performing manual tests?

First of all: knowledge of at least one programming language used to write scripts, such as Java, Groovy or Python.

It’s also essential to have experience using tools such as QTP, Selenium, Cucumber of Protractor. Of course, engineering studies provide a good basis to think about entering this profession, but experience is the most important. It’s best to start from a Manual Tester position in a company that offers the possibility of also learning the ins and outs of automated testing. The ISTQB Foundation, popular among specialists in this area, also confirms the testing skills that are also necessary for this position.

In job announcements we often see requirements related to the ability to work in Agile, Continuous Integration or Continuous Delivery environments; these are essential practices in the process of developing high-quality softTypical duties of a Test Automation ware. The days are gone when the tester Engineer are designing and maintaining was the programmer’s greatest enemy, tests, continuous analysis of the effec- though this is still the subject of memes tiveness of the solutions used, preparing and jokes. Communication skills are test environments and working fundamental for today’s Test Engineer. closely with programmers. To put it They should also have a spirit of teamsimply, the Tester’s goal is to automate work, demonstrating openness and the process of verifying software quality. a proactive attitude.

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In IT one career development path that’s just as popular as a technology specialty is that of management. So a Test Automation Engineer can become an expert in their field, or if they have the right soft skills, a Test Manager or QA Department Manager.

In addition to wages, specialists also receive additional benefits, such as health insurance and recreation packages, and they particularly value the professional development opportunities offered by training, conferences, language courses etc.

Test Automation Engineers today are among the most sought-after IT specia­ lists, and thus the best compensated.

In light of the stability of the industry and the popularity of self-employment, such people prefer to sign B2B contracts and work at an hourly rate.

So top specialists can count on pay on the order of PLN 130–150 per hour, plus VAT. This group includes people with at least five years of experience in automated testing, and several solid years as a tester or programmer. Fluency in English is often a passport to the bestpaid offers, in the international environment. Specialists who have less experience in the area of automation, e.g. six months, start from rates in the area of PLN 90-100 per hour plus VAT.

In addition to wages, specialists also receive additional benefits, such as health insurance and recreation packages, and they particularly value the professional development opportunities offered by training, conferences, language courses etc. IT companies also compete on their office amenities; chillout rooms, games and massages are already standard. Still, many workers also value employer flexibility, and look for opportunities for remote work.

The main demand for specialists is observed in large cities such as Warsaw, Kraków, Wrocław and Poznań. People from other regions of Poland are often offered relocation packages to cover the cost of moving. Author:

Izabela Galus, Recruitment Team Lead, IT Kontrakt

In terms of job offers for these positions, there are plenty to choose from.

One of the popular portals with job announcements from the IT industry has two new Test Automation Engineer job offers a day. This profession is as desirable at developers, and also a niche one, because there are still too few such people on the market, so we can easily say that today’s market supports finding the ideal job.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019

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CAREER & DEVELOPMENT

RECRUITMENT AD if you are interested in this role please send your cv at:

izabela.galus@itkontrakt.pl

TEST AUTOMATION ENGINEER (B2B: PLN 16,800–23,500 net/month)

Join the team responsible for delivering a new banking application for the Scandinavian market. We guarantee an inspiring environment, high quality, new technologies, SCRUM methodology and a friendly atmosphere. Sounds interesting? If you are interested in working with Test Automation Engineer position and working with professionalists don’t hesitate and apply today.

Key responsibilities: • • • • •

Educating and bring the Agile Test mindset to the team, Developing automated tests, Unit testing, component testing, component integration testing, accept test and performance testing, including creating test cases, risk analysis, finding test data, Finding / identify test data for the team, Minor tasks in code development, code review, ensuring compliance to internal code standards.

Essential skills and qualifications: • • • • •

Excellent Java development skills with high focus on quality in the code development: IntelliJ, GIT, Jenkins, QA experience: Agile testing, API testing, creating test cases, risk analysis, unit test, component test, component integration test, accept test and performance test, Agile / Agile mindset Fluent English, Social skills – The candidate must be proactive and self-reliant, Skill to talk and understand with business people, developers and managers.

Desired skills and qualifications: • • • • •

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ISTQB certifications above foundation level, Experience in performance testing, Bug handling, Experience with Jira, QA experience: Hands on / manual testing, Creating test cases, risk analysis etc., Reporting on progress.

Outsourcing&More | May–June 2019